Experiment 1:
Sceince Area- Electricity and magnetsim
Materials: Comb, paper plate, salt and pepper, your hair
State Goals: 11.A.1.a and 13.A.2.b
Saferty considerations: none
Science processing skills: Observing and communicating
Procedure:
1.) Sprinkle some salt and pepper onto the paper plate.
2.) Rub the comb against your hair.
3.) Slowly bring the charged comb to the salt and pepper.
4.) The comb should attract the salt and pepper.
Explantion: By rubbing the comb on your hair, you are covering it with lots of little negative charges. As a result
it will then attract the positive charges in objects, like the salt and the pepper.
Experiment 2:
Science Area: Electricity and magnetism
Materials: modeling clay, balloon, paper clip, your hair.
State Goals: 11.A.1a and 13.A.2b
Safety considerations: be careful blowing up the balloon.
Science Processing skills: Observing and communicating
Procedure:
1.) Blow up the balloon and tie it off.
2.) Take the paper clip and stand it upright onto the clay.
3) Rub the balloon on your hair.
4.) Hold the balloon near, but do not touch the paper clip.
5.) What happened?
Explantion: The atoms in the paper clip have a postive center with negativley charged electrons around it. Rubbing
the balloon against your hair causes some of the electrons to jump from your hair and to collect on the balloon. This
build-up of electrons produces static electricity.
Experiment 3
Science Area: Electricity and magnetsim
Materials: balloons, hair, small pieces of paper
wet paper towel.
State Goals: 11.A.1a and 13.A.2b
Safety considerations: Becareful blowing up the balloon.
Science Processing Skills: Observing and communicating
Procedure:
1.)Blow up the balloon and tie it off.
2.)Place the paper on a flat surface.
3.) Rub the balloon on your hair, and bring it close to the paper.
4.) What happened?
5.) Now wet the balloon and bring it to the paper.
6.) Now what happens?
Explanation:
When the balloon is rubbed against your hair you are transferring electrons. The electricity does not flow easily
over rubber; the electrons are trapped there, building a strong negative charge. This charge attracts the little pieces
of paper. When the balloon is wet, the water has now formed a conductive pathway. This way, the balloons weren't attracted
the paper.
