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Target Audience:
11th and 12th grade Physics Class
Objectives:
Students Will Be Able To:
• Make observations of changing magnetic fields and electric current.
• Discover and draw conclusions regarding the relationship between magnetism and
electricity.
• Draw magnetic fields under different circumstances.
Standards Assessed:
New York State Standards in Physics
4.1 Observe and describe transmission of various forms of energy.
xv. map the magnetic field of a permanent magnet, indicating the direction of the field between the N
(north-seeking) and S (south-seeking) poles
4.1j Energy may be stored in electric* or magnetic fields. This energy may be transferred through
conductors or space and may be converted to other forms of energy.
4.1k Moving electric charges produce magnetic fields. The relative motion between a conductor and a
magnetic field may produce a potential difference in the conductor.
5.1 Students can explain and predict different patterns of motion of objects (e.g., linear and uniform circular
motion, velocity and acceleration, momentum and inertia).
5.1t Gravitational forces are only attractive, whereas electrical and magnetic forces can be attractive or
repulsive.
Misconception(s) Addressed:
• Magnetic fields behave the same as same as positive and negative charges.
electric fields • Magnetic field lines start at one pole
• North and south magnetic poles are the and end at the other.
Becky McCoy
Necessary Preparation:
COPIES
• “How Do Magnetic Field Affect Electricity?” Worksheet
MATERIALS
• Computers and projection screen
SET UP
Becky McCoy
Lesson Plan
Procedure:
Review the Physics Push-Up prompt. Give students 5 minutes to share with the class or their lab groups what
they wrote about. Allow a couple minutes for any questions.
Show the PhET demonstration on the projection screen. Walk through the bar magnet section to give students
an idea of what they will be doing.
Hand out the worksheet and have students work to complete it. Ideally, students will work independently or in
groups of 2 or 3.
Homework:
Have students do research from their textbook and two outside sources to learn more about how hydroelectric
generators work. They should then write one page about what they have learned, expanding upon their answer
from the “Generator” section on the worksheet.
Exit Strategy:
Students pack up their computers and write down the homework assignment.
Becky McCoy
Extension Activity:
Go into more depth about the Hoover Dam. This might be an opportunity to watch a short clip about it:
• “New Hoover Dam”: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D7_rzojvKdE
• Any documentary
Assessment:
Formative:
• Student questions and discussions
Summative:
• Student answers to worksheet questions
Resources:
PhET “Generator” Simulation
Bar Magnet
[In this section of the simulation, you will confirm the properties of a bar magnet and its field with the results
from the lab we did at the beginning of the unit]
1. Make sure the field inside and outside of the magnet is turned on. Sketch what the field looks like
with field lines inside and outside of the magnet. Remember, the red side of the compass points in the
same direction your arrows will. Make sure to label the magnet’s polarity!
2. Click the “Flip Polarity” button and draw the new field lines.
Pickup Coil
[In this section, you’ll explore what happens when magnets and electric circuits interact]
3. Move the magnet around near the coil and bulb, what happens? What is different if you move the
magnet around further away from the coil and bulb?
Becky McCoy
4. Describe the cause and effect in #3 – what is changing and what happens?
5. How does your answer to #3 and #4 change (or not) if you move the coil and bulb instead of the
magnet?
Electromagnet
[The electromagnet is like the opposite of the Pickup Coil: the current is induces a magnetic field]
6. If the brightness of the magnetic field symbolizes its strength, how does the strength change when
the battery’s voltage changes? What if the terminals are switched?
7. Draw the magnetic field around the coil. The arrows represent the direction of current (same as
the simulation).
Becky McCoy
Transformer
[Similar to the transformers that step up and down the electricity that goes through power lines and into our
homes]
8. Using the knowledge you have compiled in questions 1-7, write a few sentences describing how the
transformer works.
Generator
[This is a simple generator, similar to one that we will be constructing by the end of this unit]
9. Describe how the generator works. Be sure to focus on the exchanges that occur between different
types of energy and changing magnetic fields and electric current.