Digital Electricity Lesson: Resistors in Circuits - PhET Simulation & Questions

Post this digital lesson to your Google Classroom for your middle school science class to engage and experiment with resistors! This resource provides structure to fun experimentation with PhET, an excellent, free, and engaging simulation tool. Students will build circuits with a variety of materials to learn how resistors impact the flow of electricity. This simulation can be used for distance learning or in science labs with limited equipment. It can be printed out and used as a worksheet too.

This editable digital resource includes:

• kid-friendly instructions with visual support
• link to the circuit simulator by PhET
• 2 pages of simulation prompts and questions

Specific Learning Outcomes:

• Recognize and demonstrate that some materials, including resistors, are partial conductors of electricity.
• Predict the effect of placing an electrical resistance in a simple circuit.

Key Vocabulary:

• circuit
• electricity
• electrons
• battery
• current
• resistor

This resource is based on the Grade 5 & 9 Science curriculum of Alberta and is part of the Electricity & Magnetism Unit.

Looking for more digital resources on electrical circuits?

Part 1: Building a Circuit - PhET Simulation & Questions

Part 2: Conductors & Insulators - PhEt Simulation & Questions

Part 3: Resistors

Part 4: Will it Shine? Round 1

Part 5: Series & Parallel Circuits

Part 6: Will it Shine? Round 2