ELECTRICITY

ELECTRICITY LESSON

Directions:

Print the Electricity reading comprehension passage and questions (see below).

Students should read the passage silently, then answer the questions.  Teachers may also use the text as part of a classroom lesson plan.

Lesson Excerpt

Have you ever caught yourself watching a storm? If you have, did you wonder about where all the power behind the storm was coming from? If you have asked yourself this question, then you have something in common with Ben Franklin. Franklin was known for many things. Discovering and explaining electricity is just one of the most memorable things he is known for.

Franklin had a theory that lightning was merely an electrical current. His main goal was to test that theory to see if he was right. He decided that a good way to test this theory would be to see if the lightning could pass through metal. To do this he decided to use a key. However, before he could do that he had to figure out a way to get the key up near the lightning. While it may seem odd, Franklin decided the easiest way to get the key to the lightning would be by using a kite. If the lightening passed through the key, Franklin would prove that lightning was really just a stream of electric air also known as plasma. As you probably already know his findings were correct.

It was in June of 1752 when Ben Franklin decided to go fly his kite on a stormy night. From that night Ben Franklin was able to develop many of the concepts and terms that we think of when electricity comes to mind. Franklin helped to develop such terms as battery, charge, uncharged, plus, minus, electric shock, and even the term electrician.

Franklin was smart enough to realize that while lightning was powerful enough to be helpful it could also be very dangerous. Taking this into account, he decided to find a way to protect people from the dangers that lightning could cause. (continued...)