A Circuit That Lights a Bulb
Age 9 · Science
Electricity can only flow when it has a complete path to travel all the way around. This loop of parts makes that path, so the bulb lights up.
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Age 9: open this week
Browse Age 9In the picture
- The battery, which pushes the electricity out and around the loop.
- The red wire, the path the electricity travels along.
- The bulb, which glows when electricity passes through its thin filament.
- The switch, with its lever pressed down so the loop is joined.
Examples
- A torch lights up when you slide its switch, joining the battery to the tiny bulb inside.
- A doorbell rings only while your finger holds the button down and closes the circuit.
Key takeaways
- Electricity flows only in a complete loop, from one end of the battery back to the other.
- A switch works by joining that loop or breaking it.
Quiz: A Circuit That Lights a Bulb (Age 9)
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A bulb only lights up when the parts are joined in a certain way. What has to be true?
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Someone lifts the lever on the switch so the two sides no longer touch. What happens to the bulb?
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Which part gives the electricity the push that sends it all the way around the circuit?
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