Kids Activities: Electricity races
TIME: 15 MIN
Here’s a fun activity for your child to do at home while putting into practice two of our core Barca values, AMBITION and EFFORT.
Are you ambitious and like competition?
Do you like science? How about races?
This experiment combines both. It’s a race using balloons, empty cans, and creating static electricity.
On your marks, get set, go!
What elements do we need?
- Empty cans
- Some wool clothing (scarf, gloves…)
- A rubber balloon
- A starting line and finish line
Steps:
- Put the empty cans on the starting line
- Inflate your balloons
- Each racer has to rub his/her balloon with a piece of wool
- After the starting signal, each racer will place his/her balloon in front of the can without touching it, and this way try to make it arrive at the finish line.
Experiment
- What happens when you put the balloon in front of the can after having rubbed it with the wool?
- Does the same thing happen if you place the balloon in front of the can WITHOUT rubbing it with wool?
- How many times do you have to rub the balloon until you arrive at the finish line?
- How long does it take before you need to rub the balloon with the wool to get it to move again?
SCIENTIFIC EXPLANATION
An empty aluminum can have electric charges, both positive and negative, that neutralize each other. When you rub the balloon with wool, it gets charged with negative static electricity. If immediately after rubbing the balloon, you place it close to an aluminum can, the positive charges in the can are attracted by the negative charges in the balloon. Opposites attract, which is why the positive charges in the can move towards the negative charges of the balloon, and as a result, the can spins and moves forward.
