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Activity 1: Introduction to Circuits

Circuits at a minimum include wires, a resistor, and a power source, such as a battery. Starting from there they can become almost infinitely complex. We will spend some time today constructing fifteen different circuits to look at: Parallel and Series Circuits Switches LEDs Logic elements (AND, OR, NAND, NOR)

E X P E R I M E N T I N G Snap Circuits
In groups of two, please construct the following fifteen Snap Circuits projects:

Project Project Project Project Project Project Project Project Project Project Project Project Project Project Project

#1: Electric Light & Switch #2: DC Motor & Switch #5: Lamp & Fan in Series #6: Lamp & Fan in Parallel #7: Light Emitting Diode #8: One Direction for LED #9: Conduction Detector #11: Flying Saucer #12: Decreasing Saucer Lift #13: Two-Speed Fan #14: The Fuse #47: This OR That #48: This AND That #49:Neither This NOR That #50: NOT This AND That

If you have time left feel free to experiment with other Projects listed in the book or try out your own circuit constructs. However, please make sure to follow the safety and trouble-shooting guidelines laid out on pp. 1-6.

A N A L Y Z I N G 1

Each circuit element can be represented by a symbol in a circuit diagram which allows other people to understand what the circuit contains. Below are a list of symbols and an example of a two-resistor series circuit with a voltmeter and ammeter set up to measure the voltage across and the

current through a resistor.

For each of the fifteen Snap Circuits built, please complete the following three tasks: 1. Construct a circuit diagram. 2. Explain how the circuit works. 3. Give an example of how such a circuit could be (or is) used.

Once you have completed all required tasks please collate everything in one Word document and upload in Schoology.