Unit VIII: Static Electricity
Ch. 20 & 21 Static Electricity & Electric Fields
Standards 5.1, 5.4, 5.5 Massachusetts Curriculum Frameworks, October ‘06
Homework due Day 1
Answer google form questions about the basic atom- linked on my website
Day 1- Review Charge and Conductors vs. Insulators
Students will do a reading from Hewitt’s Conceptual Physics to review what charge is. Students will take notes using a video series about electricity. We will watch the first section and students will write down important information about conductors and insulators. Students will have the chance to experiment with wool and Styrofoam to encourage them to start thinking about how insulators become charged. I will perform a demonstration with two plastic rulers, a wool sock and a glass jar to finish the class.
HW- Describe what happened in the demonstration in class and try to explain why.
Day 2- Charging by Friction
Students will watch the next section of the video series and we will write down important information about charging by friction. I will give out the triboelectric series to discuss how to determine which insulator becomes positive and which becomes negative.Students will do some practice with charging by friction.
HW- Handout with 4 Questions andp. 558 # 23 - 27
Day 3- Charging by Contact and Coulomb’s law
We will review grounding and discuss charging by contact. Students will then take notes on Coulomb’s Law. After going over examples students will do some practice problems in their groups.
HW- p. 559 # 42a, c, e only, 43, 45 – 47
Day 4- Charging by Induction
We will watch the third part of the video through the induction finale. Students will then experiment and take notes on induction with electroscopes.
HW- p. 558 # 30, 33 - 35
Day 6- Pie Plate Lab
After going over the homework, students will perform the Charging Pie Plate Lab which puts together all that they have learned about charging and discharging. We will do some multiple choice practice questions for review
HW- Study for Quiz
Day 7- Quiz/Electric Fields
After a quick quiz, students will take notes about and answer questions on electric fields and electric field lines.
HW- p. 584 # 44, 46, 58, 60, 67, 69, 75
Day 8- Voltage
After going over the homework, I will discuss the term voltage in terms of the work done to store or separate charges (try to tie in the idea of electric fields also). Demonstrations with the Van deGraaf generator will be performed and discussed.
HW- p. 586 # 76 - 81
Day 9- Capacitors and Batteries
We will correct the homework. We will go over what a capacitor is and then discuss how a battery differs, allowing it to provide electrical energy for longer periods of time. I will use a “lemon battery” to demonstrate the difference.
HW- Handout-fields and voltage problems
Day 10- Leyden Jars
We will go over how a capacitor is modern descendent of the Leyden jar. Students will then experiment with homemade Leyden Jars. We will then discuss how the Leyden Jars works referring to what we have learned thus far about charging and discharging.
Day 11- Review
Day 12- Test