Jessica Galloway, Static Electricity, Grade: 4

A Hair Raising Exploration

A Look At Static Electricity

How many times have you gotten “shocked” just from shuffling your feet across a carpet or had your hair stick straight out just from putting on a sweater? It is a very common experience. Static Electricity is the reason for these events. There are many other different forms of static electricity that you might not be aware of yet. For instance, did you know that lightning is also a form of static electricity?

The Challenge:

Shuffle your feet across the

floor for about a minute then touch something that is within reach of you (such as a table or a doorknob). Were you able to generate static electricity? How did it happen? Use the sites listed below to help you find out how static electricity works. Give a brief description of the method in which static electricity is created and some more examples of static electricity that you may or may not have known about before.

Your Journey: Use these sites to guide you in finding the information

Electric Shocks			http://kidshealth.org/kid/talk/qa/electric_shock.html
Science Made Simple		http://www.sciencemadesimple.com/static.html
Electricity	http://www.idahoptv.org/dialogue4kids/season3/electricity/facts.html
Static Electricity	http://www.enchantedlearning.com/physics/Staticelectricity.shtml

To get even more information about electricity type in these key words to search engines:

Static Electricity Electricity Lightning

Questions and Comments?

Mail to: jgallowa@uvm.edu