Snap Circuits
45 Minutes | 3rd – 8th Grades
Using the Snap Circuits Junior kits, students will be introduced to the basic properties of electricity and electronics. They will learn the fundamentals behind circuitry and how circuits are used in all of the technological devices we use today. An overview of a simple circuit, followed by paired students’ testing of the kits provides insight into the types of circuits and compares the differing properties of series circuits and parallel circuits.
Students will be able to re-create circuits of various functionalities such as shining a light bulb, spinning a motor, or both. They will be able to manipulate these circuits and create their own circuits using the components provided in the snap circuit kit.
Note: This lesson is paired with the Solar Energy activity.
Lesson Plan:
Lesson Plan – Snap Circuits.
Handouts:
Circuits Review
Intro to Circuits
Student Instructions
Teacher Instructions
Presentation:
Snap Circuits & Solar Energy prezi
Standards:
- 4-PS3-2. Make observations to show that energy can be transferred from place to place by sound, light, heat, and electric currents.
- 4-PS3-4. Apply scientific principles of energy and motion to test and refine a device that converts kinetic energy to electrical energy or uses stored energy to cause motion or produce light or sound.
