Electric current, where does it come from and how does it get to our homes? Electricity definition for children. Where does electricity come from Electricity for children definition

A super quick experiment that will delight both children and adults. Learn about the conductive properties of graphite and make your LED sparkle.

We have already addressed unusual ways of lighting an LED using vegetables. Here's another one.

Experience with electricity and a simple pencil

Graphite is an electrical conductor and we have seen this from our own experience. Why does this happen? Here is the answer from the textbook, but it will be a little complicated.

In a graphite molecule in carbon atoms, 3 electrons participate in the formation of hybrid orbitals, and one electron remains unhybridized, due to which graphite conducts electric current.

Chemistry textbook for grade 11 (O.S. Gabrielyan, 2002),

Our LED was shining dimly, then we received advice from dad that we need to make the lines shorter to reduce resistance. And indeed, by drawing a simple circle with breaks, we got a brighter glow. But with a typewriter it’s more interesting.

The success of the experiment largely depends on the thickness and length of the line, as well as on the amount of graphite.

Electricity surrounds children everywhere: at home, on the street, in kindergarten, in toys and household appliances - it is difficult to remember an area of human activity where we could do without electricity. Therefore, children’s interest in this topic is understandable. Although the story about the properties of electricity is not only a matter of curiosity, but also... the safety of the baby!

At 2-3 years old, a little man begins a period when he is interested in everything. What is it, why, how does it work, why is it this way and not something else, how is it used, what is useful or harmful - a million questions a day are guaranteed to dad and mom. Moreover, the sphere of interests of the “why” is extensive: he is concerned with both mundane topics (like this, or) and sublime ones (,). And questions about electricity are also natural. What is current, where does it come from and where does it go when we flip the switch? Why does the light bulb glow from electricity and the TV work? How do daddy's or his work without a wire to an outlet? Why is the current so dangerous that parents forbid even approaching this outlet? The options are countless! Of course, you can brush them off, saying that the child is too young to understand this topic (from the point of view of science, electricity is such a complex concept that you can talk about it no earlier than 12-14 years old). But this approach is wrong. Moreover, from the point of view of both education and safety. Even if the baby does not understand the physics of the process, he is quite capable of knowing the essence of electric current and treating it with due respect.

Electricity: bees or electrons?

So let's start with a basic question: what is electricity? When communicating with a 2-3 year old child, several approaches are possible. First: gaming. You can tell your child that, for example, small bees or ants live inside the wires, which are virtually invisible to the human eye. And when the electrical appliance is turned off, they rest there, resting. But as soon as you connect it to the outlet (or press the switch if it is connected to the network), they begin to work: run or fly inside the wire back and forth tirelessly! And from this movement of theirs, energy is generated that lights a light bulb or allows certain devices to work. Moreover, the number of such bee-ants in the wire may vary. The more of them and the more actively they move, the higher the current strength - which means the larger the mechanism they can start. Simply put, to make a light bulb in a flashlight glow, you need very few of these “helpers,” but to illuminate a house, you need to have a much, much larger supply of electricity. And here it is important to emphasize: although such bees work for the benefit of people, they can be seriously offended if they are treated carelessly. Moreover, the matter will not be limited to insult - they can bite painfully and painfully (and the more bees, the stronger the bite will be). Therefore, you should not climb into a socket or disassemble an electrical appliance, or touch exposed wires of connected devices - the bees may not like the fact that someone is trying to interfere with their work...

If you don’t like this approach and prefer to answer your child’s questions with complete seriousness, then you can talk about the physical phenomenon of electricity only by adapting it for a little person. Explain that inside metal wires there are microparticles - electrons. On the one hand, they are so small that they cannot be seen even with a microscope, but on the other hand, there are a lot of them. In their normal state, they are in one place and do nothing. But when you turn on the device, electrons begin to move at high speed inside the wires. This movement creates the energy of electricity. To make it clear to your child how this is possible, you can compare it to water in pipes - it’s not for nothing that they say that current flows through wires. Like drops of liquid in a tube, pushing each other, following one after another, running until the valve is closed, electrons act exactly like this - only they have a switch instead of a valve. And from direct contact with electrons, unlike water, you do not get wet, but receive an electric shock. This is a real blow: there are a lot of electrons and they run at great speed. Therefore, if you get in their way, they hit the skin with great force, which, of course, is very painful. Therefore, if the device is plugged in or the wire is exposed (which is essentially equivalent to a pipe bursting when water flows out: and the more water, the stronger its pressure), you should not interfere with it. Let the electrons spend energy on the light bulb, rather than wasting it by hurting the baby!

Demonstrate electric current with examples

Whatever approach you choose in a story about electricity, the following question is logical for children: why, when the device is turned on, do bees or electrons begin to move in the wire, what makes them do this? In this case, it is necessary to talk in general terms about the structure of the electrical network, and it is advisable to do this with illustrative examples from the surrounding life or using photo and video materials. Tell us that all the wires in the house converge into one cable that contains the required number of electrons/bees for housing. Then he goes out into the street and, leaning on pillars, leads to a factory where these particles are produced - such a factory is called a power plant. You can tell how they are produced (by burning coal, driven by a hydroelectric power station or wind turbines, by solar panels) if the child shows interest in this. But usually in 2-3 years the concept that there is a factory where they make “electric bees” or electrons is enough. Although no one forbids you to conduct a small but visual experiment with your child. You will need a simple dynamo: with a light bulb and a knob that turns the light on. Your little one will surely be delighted to see that he can produce electricity with his own hands! Moreover, as soon as he stops turning the handle, the light immediately goes out - very clearly and simply.

Experimental practice is generally extremely useful - especially in those matters where it is necessary to show that the current is dangerous. To do this you will need some batteries and a couple of light bulbs. First, explain that a battery is such a small supply of electricity: like canned food, which contains electrons to power devices for some time. And then show how it works: installed it in a toy and a phone, they work. The charge of the bees/electrons has run out - the device has turned off: and you need either new batteries, or charge the old ones by “filling” a batch of “helpers” from the outlet (emphasize that not everything can be charged, but only batteries, called accumulators). Now move on to experiments. Take a 9 V battery (the one that is usually called a crown) and invite your baby to touch both contacts with his tongue at the same time. The slight burning sensation that you will feel is a manifestation of an electric shock - only weak, because there are very few bees or electrons in the battery. And in the socket there are an order of magnitude more of them, and the blow is ten times stronger and more painful. Of course, a considerable number of children will want to make sure of this. Therefore, a different experiment is needed: with a couple of different light bulbs - 4.5 V and 9 V. Connect the last one to the same battery - it lights up. And then connect the one that is designed for a lower voltage - and it will burn out, and spectacularly: with a bang, a flash and glass blackened from the inside... Explain that there are too many electrons in the battery for such a small light bulb, or that the bees did not like what happened to them they play to no avail, and they ruined it. It’s the same in an outlet for a person - there is a lot of current or the bees will be offended, and he can be seriously injured.

Teach how to handle electricity carefully!

Just remember: your goal is not to intimidate the child. If you go too far in this matter, there is a high risk that fear of electricity will take root in the baby’s soul. He will be terrified of it, it will be difficult for him to use electrical appliances, he will avoid them and try not to turn them on himself. It is better not to scare, but to teach accuracy and careful handling of current. Therefore, talk about the risks, but do not embellish all the details too much.

To learn how to handle electricity, pay attention to these points:

You cannot turn on any electrical appliances in the house without the permission of adults; they must know that the baby turns on and off the TV or other large electrical appliance;

It is unacceptable to disassemble electrical appliances, even if they are unplugged from the outlet or the child thinks that some part needs to be replaced - for example, a burnt out light bulb;

You must immediately inform adults about any problem with an electrical appliance: if it stops working, if it starts to smell unpleasant, smoke or spark, if its body breaks or the wire breaks;

In no case should you wet an electrical appliance or wires - water, on the one hand, can damage it, and on the other hand, it is a good conductor for current, and therefore an electric shock can occur through it;

electrical appliances must be handled carefully, not thrown or hit, all wires must be twisted carefully, without kinks, and they must be pulled out of the outlet not sharply or by the wire, but smoothly and by the protective plug;

on the street you cannot approach broken wires hanging from a pole or protruding from the ground, much less touch them; it is forbidden to open the doors of transformer booths and electrical panels;

Show your child the generally accepted symbols of electricity, which should tell him that under no circumstances should he approach the objects and buildings they indicate without the knowledge of adults.

And don't forget to tap into the child's curiosity. No matter how you explain safety rules to him, in any case, consciously or not, the baby will at least once try to climb into the socket, break the wire and break the electrical appliance. Therefore, various devices, from plugs to special cable mounts, are vital!

A child’s level of curiosity is usually off the charts in all respects, but studying some phenomena can be extremely dangerous. Such knowledge includes understanding such a harmless thing as electric current.

How to explain to a little kid what it is and how his exploration of the world around him might end?

What is electric current: options for explaining to a child

Options for explanations depend on the parent’s imagination and the child’s meticulousness. The most basic way is to tell your child that in all the sockets and wires lives a strict Uncle Tok, who really doesn’t like being disturbed by little children and can hit them painfully.

Parents who want to not only forbid their child to go where it is not necessary, but also explain why this should not be done, can talk about the fact that in all wires, sockets and electrical appliances there are many small balls - electrons. As long as we don't use electricity, the balls bounce in place. But as soon as we turn on the light, the TV, the iron, the balls begin to run quickly. And if they get in the way of a child’s hand or a mother’s finger, the balls don’t like it. They continue to run forward, pierce the arm and fingers, and it is very painful. Instead of balls, you can use the analogy of bees, which can sting painfully. True, not every child will understand why bees are bad, because... most likely have not encountered their bites.

Cartoons will also help parents, for example, “Advice from Aunt Owl” or “The Fixies,” which tell about electric current and electrical appliances in a simple and accessible form.

Experiments with electric current for children

There is no need to say that any experiments involving electricity should be carried out under the close supervision of adults. Here are a few experiments that will clearly demonstrate to your child what electric current is:

Take a 9V battery (called a coin cell) and have your child place it on the tip of his tongue. Explain to him that the slight burning sensation on the tongue is the small balls that ran, and they did not like that they were prevented from running. There are only a few balls in a small battery, so they beat just a little. And there are many more such balls in sockets and wires, so they will hit much more painfully.
A very clear demonstration is obtained using a 12 V light bulb. Plug it into a regular electrical network. Naturally, it will burn out instantly, and very significantly - with a sharp bang, and black spots will remain on the inner surface of the flask. Explain to the child that the balls were very angry because they were forced to work in vain, so they ruined the light bulb.
Take a plastic stick, rub it on a piece of wool or hair, and then apply it to the pieces of paper. Explain to your child that the paper sticks to the stick because the balls jump out, grab the paper and don’t let go. But if you touch the stick with your hand, the balls will get angry, because they do not have the strength to hold the hand, and they will push it away painfully.
For older children, you can demonstrate how electricity is made. To do this, take a battery-powered flashlight or a small lamp. As a battery, use a lemon or a potato tuber, into which insert two wires - one copper, the other galvanized. Carefully connect the ends of the wire to the contacts of a flashlight or light bulb - they should light up. Particularly advanced parents can connect several tubers in series to obtain a higher output voltage. For a child, such a sight causes great delight.

Also, if you have the means at hand, construct a simple dynamo for your child and show him that the light comes on only when you turn the handle, and as soon as you stop, the light goes out. At a minimum, you are guaranteed a short respite and silence in the house after the demonstration of such a miracle of technology.

Tell your child, but don’t make a mistake yourself

You should be aware that even after your explanations, the child will want to see for himself how painfully bees can sting from a rosette. Therefore, take all electrical precautions. Here are the simplest and most effective recommendations:

All sockets must be specially protected against child intervention.
If possible, avoid using extension cords; children love to explore them.
Do not use faulty electrical appliances or loose sockets.
Try not to leave your baby alone in a room with electrical appliances turned on.
Punish your child for plugging electrical appliances into an outlet without authorization.

Also, be sure to teach your child that if smoke, crackling noises, sparks or other signs of faulty electrical wiring or electrical appliances appear, he should immediately call his parents for help and under no circumstances should he go there himself. We wish you success!

10.05.2016 15:50

How to teach children about electric current? This question often arises among parents who want to satisfy the curiosity of their children and not overload them with terms.

The other day I was interviewed for the position of editor of a children's magazine. So there they also gave us a task - to figure out how to tell the kids about electric current.

I decided to approach this task from different angles:

1. Poem.

3. Sketch of a spread (with prose and poem)

4. There was an idea to make another video, but, unfortunately, the equipment failed (the microphone failed. Now I present these masterpieces to the readers of the “Bunny Site”, maybe thanks to this they will tell their children about electric current.

The poem deliberately uses different styles of versification in order to show versatile approaches.

Electricity

What is current?
Buddy,
It's like a river flow
But he runs along the wires -
Gives us light and joy.

Wires - conductors
Electric river.
Know that current flows in a circle
In an electrical circuit.

Once you open that chain -
The current will stop its path.

There are microparticles in the wires,
They're called electrons
All you have to do is charge
And they run, flow.

And from this we have
Everything works immediately:

Light bulbs, appliances,
All toys have motors,
Mom's washing machine
And dad's Internet.
There are lanterns on the street,
On TV - “Smeshariki”...
Thanks to the electronics
For so many years of service.

You may ask who charges them.
I will support your interest.
Batteries help
Start a process in the chain.
Only in small devices
Both in shape and weight.
For everything else
Build thermal power plants, nuclear power plants and hydroelectric power stations

The current is invisible, weightless
Light and joy - in every home
But everyone shouldn't forget
That you can't play with him AT ALL!

It's very dangerous
For sons and daughters...

Electricity- this is a thing that is somewhat similar to the flow of a river. The current also flows in a powerful stream in one direction. Only current flows through the wires and inside these wires there are not fish swimming, but microparticles (electrons), which come with the signs “+” and “-”; they are also called positively charged and negatively charged. And electric current is precisely the movement of these charged particles. Yes, it's all about the charge. The source of charge for small devices and toys are batteries, which make electrons wake up and run; without charge, electrons will not want to move anywhere, but will randomly stagnate in place. But in order for light bulbs to shine, televisions, refrigerators and washing machines to work, batteries will not help, their charge strength is too low. For these purposes, people have built huge power plants; it is from them that the electric current flows into our sockets and switches.
Electric current necessarily flows through two wires: from the source to the device along one wire, and back through another wire. This creates a closed electrical circuit. It is very simple to stop this flow; for example, you just press the switch button or unplug the device from the socket and the circuit opens. Electrical current will stop flowing into the device, and the device will stop working until the next time it is turned on.

In everyday life, we often come across the concept of “electricity”. What is electricity, have people always known about it?

It is almost impossible to imagine our modern life without electricity. Tell me, how can you do without lighting and heat, without an electric motor and a telephone, without a computer and a TV? Electricity has penetrated so deeply into our lives that we sometimes don’t even think about what kind of wizard it is that helps us in our work.

This wizard is electricity. What is the essence of electricity? The essence of electricity comes down to the fact that a stream of charged particles moves along a conductor (a conductor is a substance capable of conducting electric current) in a closed circuit from a current source to a consumer. While moving, the flow of particles performs certain work.

This phenomenon is called " electricity" The strength of electric current can be measured. The unit of current measurement - Ampere, got its name in honor of the French scientist who was the first to study the properties of current. The name of the physicist is Andre Ampere.

The discovery of electric current and other innovations associated with it can be attributed to the period: the end of the nineteenth - the beginning of the twentieth century. But people observed the first electrical phenomena back in the fifth century BC. They noticed that a piece of amber rubbed with fur or wool attracts light bodies, such as dust particles. The ancient Greeks even learned to use this phenomenon to remove dust from expensive clothes. They also noticed that if you comb dry hair with an amber comb, it stands up, pushing away from each other.

Let's return once again to the definition of electric current. Current is the directed movement of charged particles. If we are dealing with metal, then the charged particles are electrons. The word "amber" in Greek is electron.

Thus, we understand that the well-known concept of “electricity” has ancient roots.

Electricity is our friend. It helps us in everything. In the morning we turn on the light and electric kettle. We heat the food in the microwave. We use the elevator. We are riding on a tram, talking on a cell phone. We work in industrial enterprises, in banks and hospitals, in the fields and in workshops, we study at school, where it is warm and light. And electricity “works” everywhere.

Like many things in our lives, electricity has not only a positive, but also a negative side. Electric current, like an invisible wizard, cannot be seen or smelled. The presence or absence of current can only be determined using instruments and measuring equipment. The first case of fatal electric shock was described in 1862. The tragedy occurred when a person came into unintentional contact with live parts. Subsequently, many cases of electric shock occurred.

Electricity! Attention, electricity!

This story about electricity is for children. But, in itself, electricity is far from a childish concept. Therefore, in this story I would like to address mothers and fathers, grandparents.

Dear adults! When talking about electricity to children, do not forget to emphasize that current is invisible, and therefore especially insidious. What should adults and children not do? Do not touch with your hands or come close to wires and electrical systems. Do not stop to rest near power lines or substations, do not light fires, or launch flying toys. A wire lying on the ground can be deadly. Electrical sockets, if there is a small child in the house, are the object of special control.

The main requirement for adults is not only to follow safety rules themselves, but also to constantly inform children about how insidious electric current can be.

Conclusion

Physicists “gave access” to electricity to humanity. For the sake of the future, scientists went through hardships, spent fortunes in order to make great discoveries and give the results of their work to people.

Let's be careful about the work of physicists, about electricity, and remember about the danger that it potentially carries.

You can watch a fable about electricity

Dear readers and simply visitors to our magazine! We write quite a lot and in some detail about the methods, with the help of which energy resources, electricity is produced at power plants. Atom, gas, water - they were our “heroes”, except that we had not yet managed to get to alternative, “green” options. But, if you look closely, the stories were far from complete. We have never tried to trace in detail the path of electricity from the turbine to our sockets, with paths to illuminate our settlements and roads, to ensure the operation of numerous pumps that ensure the comfort of our homes.

These roads and paths are by no means simple, sometimes winding and change direction many times, but knowing what they look like is the responsibility of every cultured person of the 21st century. A century, the appearance of which is largely determined by the electricity that has conquered us, which we have learned to transform so that all our needs are satisfied - both in industry and for private use. The current in the wires of power lines and the current in the batteries of our gadgets are very different currents, but they remain the same electricity. What efforts do electric power engineers and engineers have to make to provide the most powerful currents in steel factories and small, tiny currents in, say, a wristwatch? How much work do all those who support the system of transformation, transmission and distribution of electricity have to do, and what methods ensure the stability of this system? How does the “System Operator” differ from the “Federal Grid Company”, why were both of these companies in Russia not private but state-owned?

There are a lot of questions, you need to know the answers to them in order to more or less understand why we need so many energy workers and what, roughly speaking, do they do? We are so accustomed to the fact that everything is in perfect order with electricity in our homes and cities, that we only remember about electrical engineers when something suddenly stops working, when we fall out of our usual level of comfort zone. It’s dark and cold - that’s when we talk about energy drinks, and we say words that we definitely won’t print.

We are sure that we were frankly lucky - a true professional agreed to take on this difficult, necessary, and even huge topic. We ask you to love and favor - Dmitry Talanov, Engineer with a capital letter. You know, there is a country - Finland, in which the title of engineer is so significant that at one time a catalog was published annually with a list of specialists who had it. I would like such a glorious tradition to appear in Russia someday, since in our electronic and Internet age it is much easier to create such an annually updated catalogue.

The article we bring to your attention on engineering is short, precise and succinct. Of course, everything that Dmitry wrote can be described in much more detail, and at one time our magazine began a series of articles about how the conquest of electricity took place in the 19th century.

Georg Ohm, Heinrich Hertz, Andre-Marie Ampère, Alessandro Volt, James Watt, Faraday, Jacobi, Lenz, Gramm, Fontaine, Lodygin, Dolivo-Dobrovolsky, Tesla, Yablochkov, Depreux, Edison, Maxwell, Kirchhoff, Siemens brothers and Westinghouse brothers – in the history of electricity there are many glorious names worthy of us remembering. In general, if someone wants to remember the details of how it all began, you are welcome, and Dmitry’s article is the beginning of a completely different story. We really hope that you will like it, and we will see the continuation of Dmitry Talanov’s articles in the very near future.

Dear Dmitry, on my own behalf - with a debut, we ask all readers - do not skimp on comments!

What is electric current, where does it come from and how does it get to our homes?

Everyone can find out why we need electricity and how much it helps us live by taking a critical look at their home and place of work.

The first thing that catches your eye is the lighting. And it’s true that without it, even an 8-hour working day would turn into torture. Getting to work in many big cities is already a small happiness, but what if you have to do it in the dark? And in winter it goes both ways! Gas lamps will help on the main highways, but you turned a little to the side and you can’t see a thing. You can easily fall into a basement or hole. And outside the city in nature, illuminated only by the light of the stars?

Night street lighting, Photo: pixabay.com

Without electricity, there is also nothing to remove the heat from the offices, where it was difficult to reach. You can, of course, open the windows and tie a wet towel around your head, but how long will this help? Pumps pumping water also need electricity, or you will have to regularly go to a manual pump with a bucket.

Coffee in the office? Forget it! Only if everyone does it at once and not often, so that the smoke from burning coal does not poison the working atmosphere. Or you can get it from a nearby tavern for extra money.

Send a letter to the next office? You need to take paper, write a letter by hand, then carry it with your feet. To the other end of town? We call the courier. To another country? Do you know how much it will cost? In addition, do not expect an answer earlier than six months from neighboring countries and from a year to five from overseas.

We returned home, we need to light the candles. Reading in front of them is a pain for the eyes, so you'll have to do something else. With what? There is no TV, no computers, no smartphones - even those are gone, because there is nothing to power them with. Lie on the bench and look at the ceiling! Although the birth rate will definitely increase.

It should be added that all plastics and fertilizers are now obtained from natural gas in factories where thousands of motors are spinning, driven by the same electricity. From here, the list of available fertilizers is greatly shortened to those that can be prepared from natural raw materials in vats, stirring the toxic slurry in them with manual, water or steam driven paddles. As a result, the volume of products produced is greatly reduced.

Forget about plastics! Ebonite is our highest happiness from a long list. And among the metals, cast iron becomes the most affordable. From medicine, the stethoscope and the quickly rusting scalpel again appear on the stage as the main weapon. The rest will sink into oblivion.

You can go on for a long time, but the idea should already be clear. We need electricity. We can survive without him, but what kind of life would it be! So where did this magical electricity come from?

Discovery of electricity

We all know the physical truth that nothing disappears anywhere without a trace, but only passes from one state to another. The Greek philosopher Thales of Miletus encountered this truth in the 7th century BC. e. discovering electricity as a form of energy by rubbing a piece of amber with wool. Part of the mechanical energy turned into electrical energy and the amber (in ancient Greek “electron”) became electrified, that is, it acquired the properties of attracting light objects.

This type of electricity is now called static, and it has found wide application, including in gas purification systems at power plants. But in Ancient Greece there was no use for it, and if Thales of Miletus had not left behind records of his experiments, we would never have known who the first thinker was who focused his attention on the type of energy that is perhaps the purest among all , with whom we are familiar to this day. It is also the most convenient to manage.

The term “electricity” itself—that is, “amber”—was coined by William Gilbert in 1600. From this time on, they began to experiment widely with electricity, trying to unravel its nature.

As a result, from 1600 to 1747, a series of exciting discoveries followed and the first theory of electricity appeared, created by the American Benjamin Franklin. He introduced the concept of positive and negative charge, invented a lightning rod and with its help proved the electrical nature of lightning.

Then, in 1785, Coulomb's law was discovered, and in 1800, the Italian Volta invented a galvanic cell (the first source of direct current, the predecessor of modern batteries and accumulators), which was a column of zinc and silver circles separated by paper soaked in salted water. With the advent of this, stable for those times, source of electricity, new and important discoveries quickly followed one after another.

Michael Faraday giving his Christmas lecture at the Royal Institution. Lithography fragment, Photo: republic.ru

In 1820, the Danish physicist Oersted discovered electromagnetic interaction: while closing and opening a circuit with direct current, he noticed cyclic oscillations of a compass needle located near a conductor. And in 1821, the French physicist Ampere discovered that an alternating electromagnetic field is formed around a conductor with alternating electric current. This allowed Michael Faraday to discover electromagnetic induction in 1831, describe the electric and magnetic field with equations and create the first alternating current electric generator. Faraday pushed a coil of wire into a magnetized core and, as a result, an electric current appeared in the winding of the coil. Faraday also invented the first electric motor, a conductor carrying an electric current that rotates around a permanent magnet.

It is impossible to mention all the participants in the “race for electricity” in this article, but the result of their efforts was an experimentally provable theory that describes electricity and magnetism in detail, according to which we now produce everything that requires electricity to function.

Direct or alternating current?

In the late 1880s, before the advent of global standards for the production, distribution and consumption of industrial electricity, a battle broke out between supporters of the use of direct and alternating current. Tesla and Edison stood at the head of the opposing armies.

Both were talented inventors. Except that Edison had much more developed business abilities and by the time the “war” began, he had managed to patent many technical solutions that used direct current (at that time in the USA, direct current was the default standard; constant is a current whose direction does not change according to time).

But there was one problem: in those days, direct current was very difficult to transform into higher or lower voltage. After all, if today we receive electricity at 240 volts, and our phone requires 5 volts, we plug into the socket a universal box that converts anything into anything in the range we need, using modern transistors controlled by tiny logic circuits with sophisticated software. What could be done then, when there were still 70 years left before the invention of the most primitive transistors? And if, due to the conditions of electrical losses, it was necessary to increase the voltage to 100,000 volts in order to deliver electricity over a distance of 100 or 200 kilometers, any Volta poles and primitive direct current generators were powerless.

Understanding this, Tesla advocated alternating current, the transformation of which into any voltage levels was not difficult even in those days (alternating current is considered to be a current whose magnitude and direction periodically change over time even with a constant resistance to this current; at a network frequency of 50 Hz this happens 50 times per second). Edison, not wanting to lose patent royalties to himself, launched a campaign to discredit alternating current. He insisted that this type of current was especially dangerous for all living things, and as proof, he publicly killed stray cats and dogs by applying electrodes connected to an alternating current source to them.

Edison lost the battle when Tesla offered to light up the entire city of Buffalo for $399,000 against Edison's offer to do the same for $554,000. On the day when the city was illuminated with electricity received from a station located at Niagara Falls and producing alternating current, the company General Electric threw direct current out of consideration in her future business projects, fully supporting alternating current with her influence and money.

Thomas Edison (USA), Fig.: cdn.redshift.autodesk.com

It may seem that alternating current has conquered the world forever. However, he has hereditary diseases that grow from the very fact of variability. First of all, these are electrical losses associated with losses in the inductive component of power transmission line wires, which are used to transmit electricity over long distances. These losses are 10-20 times higher than the possible losses in the same power lines if direct current flows through them. Plus, there is the increased complexity of synchronizing the nodes of the power system (for better understanding, say, individual cities), because this requires not only equalizing the voltages of the nodes, but also their phase, since alternating current is a sine wave.

This also shows a much greater commitment to the “swinging” of the nodes in relation to each other, when the voltage and frequency begin to change up and down, which the average consumer pays attention to when the light in his apartment blinks. Usually this is a harbinger of the end of the joint work of nodes: the connections between them are broken and some nodes find themselves with an energy deficit, which leads to a decrease in their frequency (i.e., a decrease in the rotation speed of the same electric motors and fans), and some with excess energy, leading to dangerously high voltages throughout the entire site, including our outlets with devices connected to them. And with a sufficiently long power line, which, for example, is critical for the Russian Federation, other effects that spoil the mood of electricians begin to appear. Without going into detail, we can point out that transmitting alternating current electricity through wires over very long distances becomes difficult, and sometimes impossible. For information, the wavelength with a frequency of 50 Hz is 6000 km, and when approaching half of this length - 3000 km - the effects of traveling and standing waves, plus effects associated with resonance, begin to take effect.

These effects are absent when using direct current. This means that the stability of the energy system as a whole increases. Taking this into account, as well as the fact that computers, LEDs, solar panels, batteries and much more use direct current to operate, we can conclude: the war with direct current is not yet lost. Modern DC converters for any power and voltage used today have very little left to equal the price of AC transformers familiar to mankind. After which, apparently, a triumphant march across the planet of direct current will begin.

In everyday life, we often come across the concept of “electricity”. What is electricity, have people always known about it?

Thus, we understand that the well-known concept of “electricity” has ancient roots.

Electricity! Attention, electricity!

This story about electricity is for children. But, in itself, electricity is far from a childish concept. Therefore, in this story I would like to address mothers and fathers, grandparents.

The main requirement for adults is not only to follow safety rules themselves, but also to constantly inform children about how insidious electric current can be.

Conclusion

Let's be careful about the work of physicists, about electricity, and remember about the danger that it potentially carries.

You can watch a fable about electricity

Educational journey-acquaintance “Electricity and electrical appliances”

Scenario of an educational journey

Krivyakova Elena Yuryevna, teacher of speech therapy group, MBDOU child development center - kindergarten No. 315, Chelyabinsk

Description:

We present to your attention a scenario of an educational journey. Section “Child and the world around us”. The educational journey scenario is aimed at expanding and generalizing knowledge about electricity and electrical appliances, developing safe behavior in relation to electricity and electrical appliances, interest in objects surrounding everyday life, and using the acquired knowledge in play activities. The prepared material will be useful for teachers of additional education, teachers of speech therapy and general education groups.
Integration of educational areas:“Cognition”, “Communication”, “Safety”, “Socialization”.
Types of children's activities: gaming, educational, communicative, experimental.
Target: Developing interest in phenomena and objects in the surrounding world. Expanding knowledge of safe behavior.
Tasks
Educational:
1. Expand knowledge about electricity and electrical appliances.
2. Summarize children’s knowledge about the benefits and dangers of electricity.
3. Replenish children’s vocabulary with new concepts “hydroelectric power station”, “battery”, “electric current”.
Correctional and developmental:
4. Activate the speech and mental activity of children. Promote the ability to clearly and competently formulate your thoughts.
5. Automate sound pronunciation in children during onomatopoeia.
6. Develop visual and auditory attention, verbal and logical thinking, memory, creative imagination.
7. Develop children's social and communication skills in joint activities.
Educational:
8. Cultivate a friendly attitude towards peers through the ability to listen to a friend and accept the opinion of another.
9. To develop basic skills of safe behavior in everyday life when handling electricity.
Expected Result: increasing interest in surrounding objects in everyday life and using the acquired knowledge in everyday life.
Preliminary work: conversation “Journey into the past of the light bulb”; learning riddles and poems about electrical appliances; viewing illustrations of electrical appliances; selection of items powered by batteries, accumulators, batteries for the exhibition; children's stories from personal experience.
Equipment:
- cut-out picture depicting an electric light bulb;
- cards from the didactic game “The Evolution of Transport and Things Around Us” using the example of the group of “lighting devices”;
- candle;
- multimedia system;
- a toy set for conducting experiments in various fields of knowledge “Electric Siren” from the series of scientific toys “Studying the world around us”;
- exhibition of items powered by batteries, accumulators, batteries;
- easel;
- soft modules;
- models depicting safety rules when working with electrical appliances;
- emblems with the image of a light bulb according to the number of children.
Methods of training and education: artistic expression (poems and riddles), demonstration material, use of TRIZ technology elements (techniques: “good - bad”, modeling), experimentation.
Conditions: a spacious hall in which you can move freely; chairs according to the number of children; the table on which the exhibition is located; easel with upside down models of safe handling of electrical appliances.

Progress of the event:

Educator: Tell me, have people always used light bulbs for lighting? (children's answers).
Dive into the problem: I invite you to plunge into the past and trace how people illuminated their homes at different times.
Didactic game “The Evolution of Things Around Us”

Exercise: In front of you are pictures depicting different lighting fixtures. Choose a picture that caught your attention and you liked. And now, with their help, we will build a path from the past to the present. (Arrange the cards in chronological order, in accordance with the previously held conversation: “Journey into the past of the light bulb”).
Educator: We have built a bridge from the past to the present. I'll take a candle now, light it, and you follow me (the child who comes last collects pictures). We cross the “bridge” from the past to the “present”.
Educator: So you and I find ourselves in the present (the teacher invites the children to sit on chairs opposite the screen).
Riddle-poem:
I see a socket at the top of the wall,
And it becomes interesting to me,

(Electricity)
Educator: Do you want to know how electricity comes to our house?
Slide show

The teacher comments: This is a hydroelectric power station. Under high pressure, water enters the turbine, where electricity is generated using a generator. It is supplied to special substations, and from them it then runs through wires to our homes, hospitals, factories and to places where people cannot do without electricity.
Educator: Tell me, what else do people use electricity for, besides lighting a room? (children's expected answer: for using electrical appliances).
Game "Riddles-solutions"
Children take turns asking riddles. After the children answer, the correct answer appears on the multimedia screen.
1st child:
If I see dust, I’ll grumble,
I'll finish it and swallow it! (Vacuum cleaner)
Educator: What sounds can we hear when a vacuum cleaner is running? (J)
2nd child:
First load the laundry into it,
Pour in the powder and plug it in,
Don’t forget to set the washing program
And then you can go and rest. (Washing machine)
Educator: What sounds do we hear when the washing machine is running? (RU).
3rd child:
Is your dress wrinkled? Nothing!
I'll smooth it out now
I am no stranger to working...
Ready! Can be worn. (Iron)
Educator: What sounds can we hear while the iron is operating? (PSh).
4th child:
Different products live there,
Cutlets, vegetables and fruits.
Sour cream, cream and sausages,
Sausages, milk and meat. (Fridge)
Educator: Well done, you and I not only solved all the riddles, but also remembered all the sounds that we hear when these electrical appliances operate.
I wonder what sounds we hear when the refrigerator is running? (DZ's answer).
Guys, remember which electrical appliances we haven’t named yet, name them. (Children's answers are accompanied by a slide show). Did you remember everyone?!
Physical education minute (intensification of attention and motor activity, restoration of performance).
Educator: Where is the refrigerator usually located in the apartment? (in the kitchen)
And we will imagine that we are in the kitchen (children perform movements in accordance with the text).
What's that noise in this kitchen?
We will fry cutlets.
We'll take a meat grinder
Let's check the meat quickly.
Beat together with a mixer
Everything we need for the cream.
To bake the cake quickly,
Let's turn on the electric oven.
Electrical appliances are a miracle!
It would be bad for us to live without them.
Educator: Do you know, guys, that people have learned to tame electricity, and even hide it in special “houses”: accumulators and batteries - they are called “batteries” (Show pictures on a slide).
Experiment (specially prepared table). Now we will conduct an experiment and check whether the electrical system can really operate on ordinary batteries. And make sure that electricity really “lives” in them (Experience with the “electric siren” set).

Educator: Guys, who knows where else people use these “houses” to store electricity: batteries, accumulators? (Answers: video camera, flashlights, remote control, camera). The teacher draws the children’s attention to the exhibition and examines the exhibits.
Educator: Guys, think and tell me, what benefits does electricity bring to humans? (children's answers).
- Is there any harm? (children's answers).
Rules for safe handling when working with electrical appliances
Children sit on soft modules opposite the easel.
Exercise: Using models, we need to formulate basic safety rules when working with electrical appliances. Based on the demonstration of the models, we formulate the rules.

Rule 1. Do not insert foreign objects into the electrical outlet, especially metal ones!
Why? Because the current, like a bridge, will move across the object to you and can seriously damage your health.

Rule 2. Do not touch exposed wires with your hands!
Why? An electric current flows through a bare wire not protected by a winding, the shock of which can be fatal.

Rule 3. Do not touch switched on devices with bare hands!
Why? You can get an electric shock because water is a conductor of electricity.

Rule 4. Do not leave switched on electrical appliances unattended!
Why? Because switched on electrical appliances can cause a fire. When leaving home, always check that the lights are off, that the TV, tape recorder, electric heater, iron and other electrical appliances are turned off.
Educator reads a poem:
ELECTRICITY
I see a socket on the wall below
And it becomes interesting to me,
What kind of mysterious beast is sitting there?
Tells our devices to work?
The beast's name is electric current.
It's very dangerous to play with him, my friend!
Keep your hands away from current.
Don’t rush to stick your fingers into the socket!
If you try to joke with the current,
He will get angry and might kill.
Current is for electrical appliances, understand,
Better never tease him!
Summing up the educational journey.
So our journey of getting to know electricity and electrical appliances has ended. What did you like and remember most about our trip? (children's answers). I wish you to remember the importance of electrical appliances in our lives and not to forget about the insidiousness of electricity. Remember the safety rules for using electrical appliances. And this cheerful light bulb emblem will remind us of our journey.

The teacher gives the children an emblem with a picture of an electric light bulb.

A super quick experiment that will delight both children and adults. Learn about the conductive properties of graphite and make your LED sparkle.

We have already addressed unusual ways of lighting an LED using vegetables. Here's another one.

Experience with electricity and a simple pencil

Graphite is an electrical conductor and we have seen this from our own experience. Why does this happen? Here is the answer from the textbook, but it will be a little complicated.

In a graphite molecule in carbon atoms, 3 electrons participate in the formation of hybrid orbitals, and one electron remains unhybridized, due to which graphite conducts electric current.

Chemistry textbook for grade 11 (O.S. Gabrielyan, 2002),

The success of the experiment largely depends on the thickness and length of the line, as well as on the amount of graphite.

Electricity is a form of energy. It is produced, for example, in batteries, but its main source is power plants, from where it enters our homes through thick wires or cables. Try to imagine how water flows in a river. Electricity moves through wires in the same way. This is why electricity is called electric current. Electricity that is not moving anywhere is called static.

A flash of lightning is an instantaneous discharge of static electricity accumulated in thunderclouds. In such cases, electricity moves through the air from cloud to cloud or from a cloud down to the ground.

Take a plastic comb and run it through your hair quickly and vigorously several times. Now bring the comb to the pieces of paper and you will see that it will attract them like a magnet. When you comb your hair, static electricity accumulates in your comb. An object charged with static electricity can attract other objects.

Electrically, current moves through wires only if they are connected in a closed ring - an electrical circuit. Take a flashlight, for example: the wires connecting the battery, light bulb and switch form a closed circuit. The electrical circuit in the figure above operates on the same principle. As long as current flows through the circuit, the light bulb is lit. If the circuit is opened—say, by disconnecting the wire from the battery—the light will go out.

Materials that allow electric current to pass are called conductors. Electrical wires are made from such materials - in particular copper, which conducts electricity well. A live wire poses a danger to humans (our body is also a conductor!), so the wires are covered with a plastic braid. Plastic is an insulator, that is, a material that does not allow current to pass through.

ATTENTION! Electricity is dangerous to life. Electrical appliances and sockets should be handled with great care. Don't climb power line masts, or better yet, don't go near them at all!

How do you know which materials are conductors and which are insulators? Try one simple experiment. Everything you need for this is shown in the picture above. First you will need to assemble an electrical circuit - such as I described above.

Disconnect one of the wires. As a result, the circuit will open and the light will go out. Now take a paperclip and place it so that you can restore the chain. Did the light come on or not?

Try using something else instead of a paperclip, such as a fork or an eraser. If the light bulb lights up, then it is a conductor; if it doesn’t light up, it is an insulator.

Electricity is generated in power plants. From there it reaches cities and villages via power lines - wires that are strung on high masts. Electricity is supplied directly to houses through wires laid underground.

These electric toy cars can be controlled by varying the amount of current that passes through a metal racing track. Many electrically powered machines have complex electronic circuits that control their operation.

This toy train is equipped with an electric motor. The current, passing through the metal rails, enters the motor. Under the influence of current, the motor drives the wheels. When the electric current is turned off, the train stops.

This is interesting.
Lightning rods are often installed on the roofs of tall buildings - metal rods connected to the ground. Metals are good conductors. If a building is struck by lightning, the metal rod attracts the electricity and the discharge goes into the ground without harming anyone.

Electricity: bees or electrons?

Demonstrate electric current with examples

Teach how to handle electricity carefully!

To learn how to handle electricity, pay attention to these points:

You cannot turn on any electrical appliances in the house without the permission of adults; they must know that the baby turns on and off the TV or other large electrical appliance;

It is unacceptable to disassemble electrical appliances, even if they are unplugged from the outlet or the child thinks that some part needs to be replaced - for example, a burnt out light bulb;

You must immediately inform adults about any problem with an electrical appliance: if it stops working, if it starts to smell unpleasant, smoke or spark, if its body breaks or the wire breaks;

on the street you cannot approach broken wires hanging from a pole or protruding from the ground, much less touch them; it is forbidden to open the doors of transformer booths and electrical panels;

Educational journey-acquaintance “Electricity and electrical appliances”

Scenario of an educational journey

Krivyakova Elena Yuryevna, teacher of speech therapy group, MBDOU child development center - kindergarten No. 315, Chelyabinsk

Description:

Progress of the event:

Teacher's opening speech (stimulation for upcoming activities):
Dear Guys! I am glad to see you all healthy and cheerful. Today we have an unusual journey ahead of us, in which we will learn a lot of interesting things. And for starters...
Problem situation: Notice what's on the table? It looks like these are cut parts of the picture. Take one piece each and try to put together the overall picture. (children collect).
What happened? (electric lamp).

Educator: Tell me, have people always used light bulbs for lighting? (children's answers).
Dive into the problem: I invite you to plunge into the past and trace how people illuminated their homes at different times.
Didactic game “The Evolution of Things Around Us”

Rule 2. Do not touch exposed wires with your hands!
Why? An electric current flows through a bare wire not protected by a winding, the shock of which can be fatal.

Rule 3. Do not touch switched on devices with bare hands!
Why? You can get an electric shock because water is a conductor of electricity.

The teacher gives the children an emblem with a picture of an electric light bulb.

Natalia Frolova
Educational lesson “Electricity” for children 6–7 years old

Tasks:

Educational:

Summarize knowledge children about electrical appliances, about their purpose in everyday life;

introduce concepts« electricity» , « electricity» ;

introduce with rules for safe handling electrical appliances.

Developmental:

Develop the ability to work with models;

Develop a desire for search cognitive activity;

Develop mental activity, curiosity, and the ability to draw conclusions.

Educational:

Cultivate interest in knowledge of the surrounding world;

Media objects used: poems, games, photos electrical appliances; electronically-educational resources: presentation « Electricity» , cartoon.

Equipment used: projector, screen, laptop, sports equipment: ball.

Preliminary work: conversations, watching Aunt Owl cartoons.

Vocabulary work: activate adjectives, nouns, generalizing words in speech. Form and enrich the vocabulary ( electricity, electrical appliances, trough, washboard)

Progress of the lesson

I. Motivation

Music is playing.

Educator: - Hello guys. Today we will talk about electricity, about safety in the house, we will play interesting games and find out how electricity appears in our homes.

II. Educator: - Listen to the poem

We love our home very much,

Both cozy and dear.

But not everyone could

Redo a lot of things.

We need to clean the house,

Cook, wash,

And also iron the clothes...

How to cope with all the work!

And it’s wonderful that now

We have helpers.

They make our work easier

They save our time.

Educator: - What helpers are talked about in the poem?

Educator: - Now let’s imagine that we found ourselves in a time when people still knew nothing about electricity, and therefore about electrical appliances he didn't know and didn't think. But he cooked his own food, washed his clothes and cleaned his house.

III. CONVERSATION ABOUT DEVICES "What is, what was"

Educator: Let's talk about what helped the hostess before and what now.

Educator: - What is this? (on the screen there is a slide - a trough)

Children: trough, washing board.

Educator: - That's right, this is a trough. What do you think they did in it?

Children: washed

Educator: - How does your mother wash now? What helps her?

Children: washing machine

Educator: - What it is?

Children: broom

Educator: - What is it for?

Children: remove dirt, sweep the floor

Educator: - What helps clean the house now instead of a broom?

Children: vacuum cleaner

Educator: - Right. Look what's pictured here?

Children: iron

Educator: - What is it for?

Children: ironing clothes

Educator: - Look what the iron used to be like. It is heavy, they put coals in it and ironed it while they were hot. Look what the iron has become now. It is lightweight, comfortable and quick to iron.

Educator: - What is this?

Children: stove, furnace

Educator: - What do you think it was needed for?

Children: cooking, heating, heating the house

Educator: - What devices are used nowadays instead of a stove?

Children: microwave, electric stove, electric heater

Educator: - What is this?

Children: candle

Educator: - What was it needed for?

Children: illuminate the room

Educator: - What device replaced the candle?

Children: lamps, chandeliers

Educator: - Well done, you completed the task. Now you know how many devices man has improved thanks to electricity.

Educator: - What do you think is necessary for everything electrical appliances started working?

Children: electricity, current, wires

Educator: - Absolutely right. All electrical appliances run on electricity. But before I tell you where it comes from electricity, let's warm up a little.

Educator: - Come out onto the carpet. Stand in a circle. I'll call electrical appliance, and the one who gets the ball in his hands will be told what actions he is performing (iron, hair dryer, microwave, refrigerator, kettle, vacuum cleaner, fan). And now I will name the device that was used before, and you you will call it, what it was replaced with in our time (candle, trough, broom).

Educator: - You see how much electrical appliances surround us. They are our best helpers. All of them make our life convenient and varied. Without them it would be difficult for a person. All these devices operate from electricity.

Educator: - And now the task such: without turning your body, just turning your head, look around you for pictures with the image electrical appliances(children find pictures with their eyes and name them).

Educator: - Let's continue the conversation about electricity. Sit on the chairs.

IV. TEACHER'S STORY “WHERE DOES IT COME FROM? ELECTRICITY»

Educator: - Who knows where it comes from? electricity(answers children)

Educator: - Electric current is generated at large powerful power plants. To obtain electricity, such stations use steam, sunlight, water and wind (slide show with