Year 6 had lots of fun investigating static electricity.

Static electricity is the buildup of the electrical charge in an object when it is rubbed against another object. Static electricity causes objects to stick together when they have opposite charges and repel when they have the same charge. Common examples of this include rubbing a party balloon on your head.

We thought we’d give it a go…

We had some enthusiastic volunteers…

Loving the new hairstyle…

 

Some objects such as wool, glass, human skin and hair are more likely to accumulate electric charges and have static electricity. Shuffling your feet across carpet, particularly in socks, is another way your body gains more electrons; they are released when you touch something such as a doorknob or another person.

As scientists the children were  posed with a problem.

How could they get tissue paper to move without touching it ?

Working systematically and collaboratively small groups carried out their investigation…

Getting there…

How could we attract more tissue paper?

This group were more successful….

They realised rubbing the balloon for different lengths of time to hold different amounts of static electricity to pick up more tissue paper worked.

And finally making a prediction….

What will happen if you rub a balloon on your head a hold it over a mixture of salt and pepper?

The science explained…

It’s not magic, it’s static electricity! Rubbing a balloon gives it a negative charge, also called static electricity. When the balloon gains enough static electricity, and it is brought near the mix of salt and pepper, the negative charge polarizes the salt and pepper. That is, it moves the electrons of the salt and pepper to one side, leaving one end positive and one end negative. The positive end is attracted to the negatively charged balloon, but because pepper is much lighter than salt, the pepper flakes will jump on the balloon, leaving the salt behind.

 

 

 

Static electricity does more than just make your hair stand up!!!