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Conductors and Insulators

Science Year 3/4
This unit is part of Year 3/4 Science Electric Personalities

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Objectives

It’s time to consider some electrical conundrums. How can you switch a circuit on and off? How can you recognise different components in simple circuit diagrams? Which materials allow electrical currents to pass through them and which do not? You will discover the answers through playing a game and devising an investigation.

Science Objectives
i) Recognise that a switch opens and closes a circuit and associate this with whether or not a lamp lights in a simple series circuit
ii) Recognise some common conductors and insulators, and associate metals with being good conductors

Working Scientifically

  1. Setting up simple practical enquiries, comparative and fair test
  2. Gathering, recording, classifying and presenting data in a variety of ways to help in answering questions
  3. Recording findings using simple scientific language, drawings, labelled diagrams, keys, bar charts, and tables


You Will Need

Additional Resources

  • A homemade paperclip switch (see Teachers’ Notes)
  • Cells (batteries) in battery holders (one power source per pair)
  • Double ended crocodile clip leads (3 per pair of children)
  • A bulb in a bulb holder per pair of children
  • A large selection of items to be tested (see Teachers’ Notes for suggestions)
  • A cup of water and another of salt water (optional)

Lesson Planning

Teaching

  • Discover that some materials allow electricity to flow through them (electrical conductors) and others do not (electrical insulators).
  • Test materials for conduction, record findings and draw conclusions.

Activities

  1. Play an active game to revise electricity concepts and vocabulary and learn more (Yrs3&4)
  2. Discover the function of a switch and begin to learn electrical symbols for components (Yrs3&4)
  3. Test a variety of materials for electrical conductivity and record results either in a given table (Yr3) or by drawing their own table (Yr4) and begin to draw conclusions (Yrs3&4)

Investigation
Our electric personalities will need to contain electrical components (lights, buzzer or motors) but how can we get them to work? Investigate how to make electrical components work and discover that a circuit is needed. Learn the symbols for each component. Look at a range of drawn circuits. (exploring, observing, pattern seeking)
Year 3 – Predict which will work and which will not and explain why
Year 4 – Predict which will not work and redraw the circuits so they will

Vocabulary
Electricity, circuit, switch, battery, device, motor, bulb, buzzer, component, wire, lead, crocodile clip, connection, power, cell, energy, flow, current, conductor, insulator, disconnect

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