Electrostatic Toy Project

Challenge: To create a toy / trick / game / demo that will help grade 9 students understand a topic within the electrostatics unit.

Parameters: You will have small groups of grade 9 students cycling through the class, and you will have a few minutes with each group. You will need to have some kind of demo, game, interactive device, model, toy, puzzle, etc. etc. that uses the physics of static electricity and electric fields in order to work properly. You will need to teach them about the physics of how it works, and you will likely need a visual aid to help with the explanation.

Scoring: You will be evaluated by the grade 9 students and their teacher for part of your mark, and part of your mark will be based on my evaluation. See the rubric on the next page.

Rank will be based on score, with highest score earning highest rank.

Physics: Different materials have different affinity for electrons, and rubbing them together may transfer charge. If trapped on an object, there will be a resulting electric field around that object. Charges in an electric field will feel a force due to that field.

Extensions: The work required to develop a static charge need not be done through frictional forces, and does not have to be done by hand. There are other ways. The effects of charges and fields are too numerous to list, but many can be dramatic (like a spark), cause movement (like picking up tiny pieces of paper), or colourful (like liquid crystal displays).

Help/Hints: Brainstorm lots of ideas with each other, and try to make sure you are not doing the same thing as another group. Let me know what you are thinking about and I will try to help you find materials. You must understand how your “toy” works at the grade 12 level, but make sure your grade 9 lesson is age-appropriate! Why not find some friends or relatives who are younger, and use them as test subjects?

Quiz Topics: Electric charge, Coulomb’s Law, electric fields, electric potential energy, voltage

Online Text: 18.1-18.5 (with math), 18.6-18.8 (no math), 19.1-19.4 (with math), 19.5-19.7 (for interest only)

Timeline: Day 1 Planning

Day 2 Building

Day 3 Building

Day 4 Grade 9 visitors