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Lesson Plan - Lightning

This document provides instructions for a classroom activity to simulate lightning formation using common household materials. The activity involves rubbing wool on a Styrofoam plate to build up a static charge, then touching an aluminum pie pan placed on top to observe a miniature spark. It relates this to the buildup of positive and negative charges in thunderstorm clouds and the ground that leads to lightning. Safety precautions and extensions are also outlined.

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270 views3 pages

Lesson Plan - Lightning

This document provides instructions for a classroom activity to simulate lightning formation using common household materials. The activity involves rubbing wool on a Styrofoam plate to build up a static charge, then touching an aluminum pie pan placed on top to observe a miniature spark. It relates this to the buildup of positive and negative charges in thunderstorm clouds and the ground that leads to lightning. Safety precautions and extensions are also outlined.

Uploaded by

isispalmilla
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as DOC, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Isis Palma

EDEL 445-002 Dr. Rudd


Idea borrowed from: Web Weather for Kids
http://eo.ucar.edu/webweather/lightningact.html
(For grades 3-5)

Materials:
The materials can be found at Wal-Mart or Target stores.

Styrofoam plate
Thumbtack
Pencil with new eraser
Aluminum pie pan
Small piece of wool fabric

Nevada State Science Standards:


N.5.A.5 Students know how to plan and conduct a safe and simple investigation.
N.5.A.6 Students know models are tools for learning about the things they are
meant to resemble.
E.5.A.4 Students know the role of water in many phenomena related to weather
(e.g., thunderstorms, snowstorms, flooding, drought.)

Procedures:
1. Push the thumbtack through the center of the aluminum pie pan from the
bottom.
2. Push the eraser end of the pencil into the thumbtack (the pencil becomes a
handle to lift the pan).
3. Put the Styrofoam plate upside-down on a table. Rub the underside of the
plate with the wool for one minute. Rub hard and fast.
4. Pick up the pie pan using the pencil handle, and place it on top of the
upside-down plate.
5. Touch the pie pan with your finger. If you dont feel anything when you touch
the pan, try rubbing the plate again.
6. Try turning the lights out before touching the pan. Do you see anything when
you touch the pan?
7. Depending on the humidity of the room it may be hard to see a reaction,
consider having the students rub a balloon on their hair instead of rubbing
the wool on the Styrofoam plate.
8. Write questions on the board and have small groups discuss what happened
during the experiment and then report back as whole group.
Questions:

What happened when you touched the metal pie pan?


What caused that?
How do you think this experiment relates to the formation of lightning?

Safety precautions:

Make sure to model how to push the thumbtack through the center of the
aluminum pie pan and through the pencil eraser to prevent students from
poking themselves with the thumbtacks.
For younger students, consider handing them pre-set materials. Super glue
the pencil o the pie pan to avoid students handling thumbtacks.
Explain the expectations and make sure students know the consequences for
throwing things around or misusing materials.

Teacher information:

Lighting occurs when static electricity builds up in thunderclouds and the landscape
beneath them. The purpose of this experiment is to observe lightning formation. Its
all about static electricity; lightning happens when the negative charges (electrons)
in the bottom of the cloud (your finger) are attracted to the positive charges
(protons) in the ground (the pie pan). The electrons from the wool get transferred to
the Styrofoam plate; the resulting spark is like a mini-bolt of lightning.
The accumulation of electric charges has to be great enough to overcome the
insulating properties of air. When this happens, a stream of negative charges pours
down towards a high point where positive charges have clustered due to the pull of
the thunderhead.
The connection is made and the protons rush up to meet the electrons. It is at that
point that we see lightning. A bolt of lightning heats the air along its path causing it
to expand rapidly. Thunder is the sound caused by rapidly expanding air.

Teaching techniques:

Step by step modeling of the activity while explaining the corresponding real
life lightning phenomena with the use of visuals.
KWL: Before conducting the activity, discuss as a class what students know
about lightning and what they want to learn then model and carry out the
activity and go back to KWL to jot down what students learned.

Ways to integrate the activity:


Language Arts: Read and discuss Natures Fireworks, by: Josepha Sherman
Social Studies: Read about the invention of the lighting rod and have students
discuss life before and after its invention.

Extensions:

Assign small groups to learn/research about different types of lightning (there


are seven types), and have each group create a poster board with facts about
their assigned lightning and present to the class.
Have partners crate a safety guide outlining facts and myths about lightning,
lightning safety rules and lightning warning signs.

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