Electricity

Electricity

What is electricity?

• It's a type of energy that can build up in 1 place or flow from 1 place to another.

Static Electricity

• This electricity gathers in one place. This means the electricity does not move. 

• It's an electrical charge that builds up on an object, usually from friction. 

• Electrical charges flow (transfer) from negative to positive. 

• So, static electricity could be considered a pause in that transfer

• You feel the shock when the transfer happens, but you don't feel a shock unless there's a certain level of built-up electricity. 

Current Electricity

• This electricity carries electrical energy from one place to another.

• This is the steady flow of electrons. 

• When electrons move from one place to another, they carry an electric charge. 

Potential Energy

• This energy means it’s stored somehow for future use. 

• This energy is stored and ready for use, such as in a battery. 

• A Car on a Hill example: If a car is sitting at the top of the hill, it’s not moving and has potential energy, or the ability to move. 

• A Book Over Your Head example: If you hold a book over your head, but you do not drop it, it holds potential energy. It’s not moving, and it’s ready to be dropped or moved. 

Kinetic Energy

• This energy is energy in motion. This is the energy something has because it’s moving. 

• All kinetic energy begins as potential energy (not moving

• Any object moving or changing in any way has kinetic energy.

• Example: a hot-air balloon on the ground, while ignited, starts to go up. The balloon moving up is kinetic energy.