Identifying conductors and insulators in Simple electric circuits – Class 6 Science Experiment
Chapter Name: Water in our life
Activity Name: Identifying conductors and insulators in Simple electric circuits
Activity Description:
In this experiment, we will use a simple electric circuit to identify conductors and insulators. We will insert various objects between two open terminals of the circuit and observe whether the bulb glows or not.
By recording our observations, we will determine whether each object is a conductor or an insulator.
Required Items:
- Simple electric circuit setup (as used in Activity 3)
- Hairpin
- Safety pin
- Eraser
- Plastic scale
- Matchstick
- Piece of a metal bangle
- Piece of a glass bangle
- Paper clip
- Table for recording observations
Step by Step Procedure:
- Set up the simple electric circuit by removing the safety pin from the drawing pins, creating two open terminals labeled as A and B.
- Gather the objects to be tested: hairpin, safety pin, eraser, plastic scale, matchstick, piece of a metal bangle, piece of a glass bangle, and a paper clip.
- Insert the first object (hairpin) between terminals A and B in the circuit.
- Observe whether the bulb glows or not and record the observation in the table.
- Remove the hairpin from the circuit and repeat steps 3-4 for each object, one at a time.
- Insert the second object (safety pin) and repeat steps 4-5.
- Continue this process for each object until all objects have been tested and observations have been recorded.
Experiment Observations:
| Object | Bulb Glows (Yes/No) |
|---|---|
| Hairpin | No |
| Safety pin | Yes |
| Eraser | No |
| Plastic scale | No |
| Matchstick | No |
| Metal bangle | Yes |
| Glass bangle | No |
| Paper clip | Yes |
Precautions:
- Make sure the circuit is properly set up and the connections are secure.
- Handle the objects and circuit components with care to avoid any injuries.
- Ensure the objects are inserted between the open terminals A and B without touching any other part of the circuit.
- Avoid inserting any object that may cause damage to the circuit or pose a safety risk.
Lesson Learnt from Experiment:
Through this experiment, we will learn about the conductivity of different materials. Conductors allow the flow of electric current, causing the bulb to glow, while insulators do not allow the flow of electric current, resulting in the bulb not glowing.
By observing the behavior of various objects in the circuit, we can classify them as conductors or insulators based on their ability to allow or block the flow of electricity.
