Thursday, September 16, 2010

Make a Balloon Stick to the Wall


Students are amazed when seeing this trick for the first time.  This is a lesson in physical science about static electricity from negatively charged electrons.  When the students rub the balloon against their hair, they are giving the balloon a negative charge, which is known as static electricity.  If the negative charge is strong enough the balloon will stick to neutrally charges surfaces, such as a wall.  It will attract the positive charges from the wall, thus pulling the two surfaces together.  Since the balloon is a light object, it will be able to stick to the wall until the negative charges disperse.  You can also have the children hold their balloons together at the negatively charged area to see how two negatively charged surfaces repel.  Watch a Video

Supplies: balloons



Instructions:
1.  Have your students blow up their balloons and tie a knot at the end.
2.  Get your children to charge their balloons with static electricity (negative electrons) by gently rubbing         against their hair.
3.  Ask them to stick the charged side of the balloon against the wall or other vertical surfaces.  Did they stick?
4.  Now have them stick it against anther student’s balloon in the spot that has been charged. Did they repel?

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