Lesson Plan
Curated OER

WHAT MAKES A LIGHT BULB LIGHT?

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students are able to use inquiry to answer the essential questions. They are able to predict and test configurations of a battery, bulb, and wire that make the complete circuit. Students craft a group and individual theory of a...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Incandescent Light Bulb

For Teachers 5th - Higher Ed
Students study the history of the light bulb and how an incandescent light bulb works.  In this electricity lesson students complete several experiments on the light bulb.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Improvement of the Electric Light Bulb

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Students study how the first electric light was made and the history behind it.  For this electricity lesson students create their own light bulb.
Activity
Teach Engineering

Light vs. Heat Bulbs

For Teachers 6th - 8th Standards
Careful, that light bulb is hot! Compare heat and light energy using a simple light bulb. The exercise addresses energy conservation and presents actual calculations to determine the most cost-effective light bulb.
Lesson Plan
Teach Engineering

Light Up Your Life

For Teachers 7th - 9th Standards
How do lighting types affect energy efficiency? Explore different types of lighting and the energy they use. Pupils learn about types of lights and calculate the energy used during a typical school year. They discover that being...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Ohm's Law I

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students work to increase the intensity of a light bulb by testing batteries in series and parallel circuits. They analyze Ohm's Law, power, parallel and series circuits, and ways to measure voltage and current.
Activity
Curated OER

Bronx Cheer Bulb

For Teachers 9th - 12th
If you chew or make a "raspberry" while viewing an LED light source, the light will appear to wiggle or flicker. It is not because of the light itself, but because of the vibration of your skull! Have your physics class give this a try...
Activity
Exploratorium

Diffraction

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Kindle knowledge of how light travels by using this activity in your physical science curriculum. By setting up a candle flame or flashlight bulb and viewing it through a slit, observers of light see evidence of its wave characteristic....
Activity
Exploratorium

Inverse Square Law

For Teachers 9th - 12th
The inverse square law is revealed when your class participates in this activity. They move a graph paper or perfboard square back and forth in a square of light to see how the intensity changes. You will definitely want to add this...
Worksheet
Curated OER

Simple Circuit

For Students 4th - 6th
In this circuits worksheet, students follow directions on how to make a light bulb light and answer questions about it. Students answer 1 question about an insulator and 1 about a conductor.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Let's Light Up a Light Bulb!

For Teachers 3rd
Third graders investigate the concept of how electricity works in the lighting of a light bulb. They construct a circuit in order to follow the path of electricity and test how it can travel in a wire system. Then the light bulb is lit...
Activity
Teach Engineering

Lighting in My Classroom Survey

For Teachers 6th - 8th Standards
How much energy does it take to light a room? Class members calculate the total wattage it takes to light the classroom. Through calculations, responsible scientists determine the cost of energy for the year, then figure out...
Activity
Exploratorium

Give and Take

For Teachers 4th - 6th
Heat-sensitive liquid crystal sheets are available in a variety of sizes and temperature ranges. Purchase a class set of hand-held sheets and color half of each with a silver permanent marking pen. Learners of light can hold them under a...
Interactive
PBS

Real-World Ratio and Rate Reasoning: How to Power the Skate Park

For Students 5th - 6th Standards
Bring on the lights! Using an interactive, characters try to figure out how to light a skate park by examining area and ratios to determine the number of solar panels needed to power them. Pupils design a house with a roof to hold solar...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Color of Stars

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students study the color of stars. In this astronomy based lesson, students observe the colors in an open flame and apply the information collected about color and temperature to the visible light emitting from the photosphere of various...
Worksheet
Curated OER

Miscellaneous Light Topics

For Students 9th - 12th
In this light topics science worksheet, students read selections about fiber optics, fluorescent light, incandescent light, total internal reflection, polarization, glow-in-the-dark light, and lasers. Students then respond to 32...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Science of Color and Light

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Students listen to a story about colors and then conduct various experiments to determine how people see colors, identify which colors stand out best from a distance, show the results of mixed colored lighting and explain the phenomenon...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

What Configurations Work to Light a Bulb?

For Teachers 3rd - 7th
Students explore simple electrical circuits. Students experiment, using different configurations, to determine what is necessary to compeete a circuit. Students observe similarities between arrangements that work and differences in...
Lesson Plan
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WindWise Education

How Does a Generator Work?

For Teachers 6th - 12th
I get a charge out of this. In order to learn how a generator works, groups build and test one in this ninth lesson of the series. The generators are tested at low speed and high speed to determine the watt output and whether they have...
Lesson Plan
1
1
Wind Wise Education

Understanding Forms and Sources of Energy

For Teachers 6th - 12th
What is the difference between a form of energy and a source of energy? This first activity in a series of 19 lessons uses demonstrations and discussions to introduce energy to the class. Through using hand-generator flashlights,...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Waste Watchers

For Teachers 4th - 8th
Energy-aware learners conduct an audit on their electricity usage by recording their electric meter reading and assessing the thermostat, light bulbs, windows, and water heaters in their homes. In class, they analyze results and discuss...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Why Does the Bulb Light When There is Flow?

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Learners analyze light bulbs and their design. They create filaments and build a circuit for testing the filaments. Through experimentation, students discover how filament wire works. They explore the role of protons, electrons, and...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Lights On!

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Students work together to build their own simple circuits. They discover how electricity is conducted through light bulbs. They compare and contrast the differences beween a parallel and series circuit.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Compact Fluorescent Lamp Experiments

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students conduct a series of experiment on incandescent and fluorescent bulbs. For this physics lesson, students explain how they operate. They compare the efficiency and power rating of both bulbs.