Static electricity and sparks
Explain static electricity as the build-up of electric charge through friction, describe how charged objects attract or repel each other, and relate static discharge to everyday phenomena such as lightning
Teaching approaches
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1 approach
Can your child explain why a balloon rubbed on hair sticks to the wall, and connect this to the science of how lightning forms during a thunderstorm?
Explain static electricity as the build-up of electric charge through friction, describe how charged objects attract or repel each other, and relate static discharge to everyday phenomena such as lightning
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Check understanding
- Explains that rubbing transfers electrons from one material to another, creating opposite charges
- States that like charges repel and unlike charges attract
- Links the concept of static discharge to the formation of lightning as a large-scale electric spark
“Can your child explain why a balloon rubbed on hair sticks to the wall, and connect this to the science of how lightning forms during a thunderstorm?”
Curriculum record
- Type
- Conceptual
- Subject
- Science
- Domain
- Energy
- Age range
- Ages 11–12