Elementary School, Electricity & Electronics Science Projects (Page 3)

Mapping Magnetic Fields

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

You probably know that you can use iron filings to reveal the magnetic field produced by a strong magnet. If you sandwich the iron filings between pieces of waxed paper, you can make a permanent record of your magnetic experiments (Gardner, 2004, 66). Cover the wax paper sandwich with a layer of brown paper (from a roll, or cut open a paper shopping bag), and then (with an adult's help) use a hot, dry iron to seal the waxed paper together. You will have to experiment a little with your iron… Read more

Paper Circuits: Make Electrifying Art

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

"Paper circuits" are a fun way to mix electronics and art by adding lights directly to a painting or drawing. These lights need a battery to power them, and typically you would use wires to connect them. In paper circuits, though, many materials can be substituted as "wire," including special types of paint, ink, and even aluminum foil. There are also different options for what type of battery you can use. Which materials do you think will work best? Try this project to find out! Read more

Pencil Resistors

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

What do you do with your old wooden pencils when they get too short to hold? Don't throw them away; you can use them to make circuits! This project will show you how to use pencils to make resistors, an important part of many electrical circuits, and test how they affect the brightness of a lightbulb in a simple circuit. Read more

Program a Sound Level Meter to Help Protect Your Hearing

Science Fair Project Idea

Engineering Design Process

Have you ever said, "That hurt my ears!" when someone yelled loudly right next to you? Do you cover your ears when a fire truck drives by with the sirens blaring? It is good to protect your ears—even sounds that do not "hurt" can cause hearing damage if you are exposed to them for too long. In this project, you will program a device that alerts you when sounds have exceeded safe levels long enough to cause hearing damage. Read more

Rock On! Recording Digital Data with Magnets

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

This is a straightforward project that shows you how data can be digitized and stored on magnetic recording media. You'll learn how alpha-numeric characters are digitized, and you'll use bar magnets to represent the individual data "bits." You'll also learn about how much information can be stored in a small space (recording density), and how magnetic data can be erased. Read more

Rubbing Up Against Static Electricity

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

A tried and true balloon activity is to rub a balloon on your head to make your hair stand up. How does the rubbing build up static electricity? Do this experiment to see if the number of rubs makes a difference. Read more

The Speed of Light: Explore Solar Energy with a Supercapacitor Car Motor!

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

Solar cells are devices that can be used as a source of power when there is light shining on them, but they stop producing energy when they are not in the light. One way to store the solar energy for later use is to use a solar cell to charge something called a capacitor. The capacitor stores the energy as an electric field, which can be tapped into at any time, in or out of light. In this electronics science project, you will use parts of a solar car to experiment with the energy storage… Read more

The Strength of an Electromagnet

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

You may be familiar with permanent magnets—the kind that hang on a refrigerator. But did you know that other magnets, called electromagnets, can be turned on and off? When turned on, electromagnets act just like permanent magnets, but if you turn them off, their magnetic properties disappear. Electromagnets are an important part of many electronic devices, like motors, loudspeakers, and hard drives. You can create an electromagnet with a simple coil of wire and a battery. In this project,… Read more

Upstairs, Downstairs: Turning on a Light from Two Places

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

Maybe somewhere in your home there's a long hallway or a stairway with a light that you can turn on from either end. It's a nice convenience, but did you ever wonder how it's wired up to work that way? The goal of this project is to build a similar circuit with switches, flashlight batteries and a flashlight bulb (obviously, household circuits are not safe to experiment with). You'll need to understand the difference between connections made in series and connections made in parallel in an… Read more

Use Sewable Circuits to Make Cool Costumes and Accessories

Science Fair Project Idea

Engineering Design Process

Do you want to add color-changing lights to your own clothing, costume, or fashion accessory? What about making the lights flash, or adding sensors to make them automatically react to things like temperature or motion? You can do it all with sewable circuits, also called wearable electronics, that let you sew circuit parts directly into fabric. You can make anything from a basic circuit with a few LEDs up to a programmable, Arduino-compatible circuit with multiple sensor inputs and multiple… Read more

Elementary School, Electricity & Electronics Science Projects (31 results)

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