Electrical circuits

All the electrical equipment we use works using electrical circuits.

Let's learn how electricity moves through circuits to the places we need it.

Watch this video to learn more about what an electrical circuit is and how it works.

This electric buzzer game shows how an electrical circuit works.

One end of a battery is attached to the metal wire. The other end is attached to the metal loop.

If you manage to move the metal loop along the whole wire without touching it, you win the game.

If you touch the wire with the metal loop it makes a circuit and electricity flows from the battery to the buzzer. BUZZZZZZ!

The parts of an electrical circuit are joined by metal wires.

Metals conduct electricity very well. This means the electricity can travel along metal wires easily.

You must never touch a bare wire as it could give you an electric shock which can be dangerous.

This is why the metal wires used in electrical circuits are coated in plastic. It is there for our safety.

Inside their plastic covering, the metal wires transfer the electricity from the socket to the device, such as a television. But the plastic coating doesn’t conduct electricity (it's an insulator) – so it’s safe to touch.

Cables in the ground or held up by pylons join wind farms and power stations to our homes and schools in huge electrical circuits.

Inside a building, more circuits are hidden inside walls, floors and ceilings to keep them and us safe.

We can plug electrical equipment like a TV, oven, washing machine or vacuum cleaner into sockets to join them to the circuit.

Not everything that is powered by electricity needs to be plugged into a socket. Phones, tablets and some toys contain circuits that carry electricity from the battery to the working parts.

We often want to be able to turn off a device when we don’t need it.

• Some devices like the kettle and toaster turn off automatically.

• Others, like the oven and the TV, need us to turn them off.

To turn something off you need to stop electricity getting to it and we do this by breaking the circuit. This is done with a switch.

A switch is part of a circuit that can be opened or closed:

• closing the switch makes a complete loop so that electricity can flow
• opening the switch breaks the loop so that no electricity flows

Sometimes switches are harder to see.

Have a look through the examples below to learn about some switches you may not have known about:

Can you think of any other things you use that have a switch?

Remember: Electricity can be very dangerous and is never something to be played with. It can cause fires and serious injuries if it is not treated with care.

Always be careful around electric sockets and electrical things. Never touch a socket or a bare wire.

Build your own electrical circuits!

We can get a better understanding of how electrical circuits work by building our own circuits in the classroom.

You will need:

• a battery

• a battery holder

• wires with crocodile clips

• a bulb

Watch the video to find out what to do:

circuit – A loop of metal wires through which electrical energy moves.

conductor – A material that allows electricity to pass through it easily (e.g. copper).

electricity – A form of energy (electrical energy) that can make things move and work.

insulator – A material that doesn’t allow electricity to pass through it (e.g. wood).

switch – A device used to turn electrical appliances on and off when needed.

How switched on are you feeling about electricity?

Test what you've learned with this quick quiz!