Bright Idea Simple Circuit
|
Materials:
|
Instructions:
1. Start with a template on a piece of cardstock as shown in the picture.
|
2. Peel off some of the paper backing from the copper tape and begin sticking it onto the straight lines of the template. Start at the negative sign on the bottom of the square. Go peeling the paper backing off as you go because the tape tends to curl up and stick to itself.
|
3. When you get to the corner, fold the tape down and then back up the line so that the sticky part is down. Try not to break the tape because the circuit must be closed in order for it to function. At the top of the square, there is a gap- this is where the LED will be placed. Cut the tape to end right at the gap.
|
4. Before placing the LED, make sure the battery and LED work. The LED has two wires: the longer one is positive and the shorter one is negative. Slide the battery between the wires so that the positive is touching the top part of the battery (marked with a + sign) and the smaller one touching the bottom. The LED should light up.
|
5. Bend the LED wires to both sides so that you can place it on top of the gap with the wires touching the copper tape on each side. Secure the wires by taping them down- you can use a little piece of the copper tape to do this.
|
6. Finish sticking the copper tape along the square until you reach the end. Now place the battery (with the positive side facing up) at the bottom of the square as shown.
|
7. Fold the corner of the cardstock so that the copper tape that ended at the bottom of the cardstock touches the top of the battery. This will close the circuit allowing the current to flow and the LED to light up.
|
STEM:
In this experiment, you create a simple electric circuit. A simple circuit consists of three parts: Voltage (battery), Conductor (copper tape) and Resistor (LED light). The electricity flows from the power source or battery along the closed path formed by the copper tape to power the LED light bulb and returns along the path back to the starting point. The electrons flow from the negative pole of the battery through the complete path back to the positive pole of the battery.
