Hello everyone.

It's Mr. James here.

All set for another science adventure.

I know I am.

Let's get started.

This lesson is from the Unit: Simple electrical circuits, and it's called Electrical conductors: testing.

Okay.

Our learning outcome is this.

We'd like you to be able to identify objects made from a range of metals and test for electrical conductivity.

You ready to do that? I'm sure you are.

Here we go.

Of course, we'll need some key words to help us along the way.

So you can repeat them after me: metal, electrical conductor, conduct, electrical insulator.

Those are our key words, so let's think about what they mean.

A metal is a type of material.

If a material conducts electricity or heat, it means the electricity or heat can pass through it easily.

An electrical conductor is a material that allows electricity to pass through it easily.

An electrical insulator is a material that does not allow electricity to pass through it easily.

So here's how our lesson will look.

We'll start by thinking about metals and how they conduct electricity and then we'll talk about conductivity and uses of metals.

So Andeep and Izzy are discussing materials.

Andeep says "Lots of everyday objects are made from metal." Izzy says, "I wonder why? What is so good about metal?" Scientists and engineers choose materials based on their properties.

Metals are very useful materials with different properties.

Metals are used for their strength in tools.

They're also used for stiffness in aeroplane wings.

And metals are also used for their conductivity in electrical circuits.

Andeep, "Are all metals the same?" There are many different types of metals and they do not all have the same properties.

Different metals are suitable for different objects depending on the job they need to do.

Here are some examples.

We have an aluminium can, some gold jewellery, a stainless steel spoon, and iron nails.

Materials which conduct electricity are called electrical conductors.

Izzy thinks, "I wonder if all the different types of metal are electrical conductors." Scientists plan investigations which often begin with an inquiry question.

That's a question which could be answered scientifically.

Can you change Izzy's thought into a question which you could answer scientifically? Have a think about that.

Talk with a partner.

I suggest you pause the video now.

"Do all metals conduct electricity?" This is Izzy's question.

Andeep says, "I think all metals conduct electricity." Jun, "Only some metals are attracted to a magnet, so I think only these metals conduct electricity." Laura, "Only metals used in electrical appliances conduct electricity." Hmm, what do you think? Pause was the video and discuss with a partner now.

Izzy wants to carry out an experiment.

She plans to use a test circuit to answer her question.

She will test different metals in the circuit to see which conduct electricity.

So can you see where the test metal is included in her circuit? Great.

How should Izzy record her results? Again, turn to your partner, have a quick talk about what you think would be the best way.

Pause the video now.

Results of scientific inquiries can be presented in different ways, including charts and tables.

Tables are ways of recording results in rows and columns.

Here we have a table with electrical and non-electrical columns.

Under the electrical, a toaster, a computer, an alarm clock, a television and a phone.

And under the non-electrical, a pencil, a desk, a drinks bottle, and a carpet.

And we've got a heading for our table.

Must remember that.

A table showing electrical and non-electrical items. Izzy should use the table to record her results.

What should her column headings be? Izzy wants to know which metals are electrical conductors and which are not.

Materials which do not conduct electricity are called electrical insulators.

These will be good column headings: electrical conductors and electrical insulators.

By using a table of results, we can draw charts.

Here's a type of chart which you may have seen before.

It's called a bar chart.

This one shows how children travel to school.

We have a number of children on one of the axis and we have the type of transport that they use to travel to school on the other axis.

The axis you may remember are called the X and the Y axis.

You might even remember which is which.

I do hope so.

Pause the video now, have a talk about that and then we'll move on.

So bar charts or charts help us to spot patterns easily when we have lots of data.

You might spot on this one which are the most popular ways of travelling to school? Which of these materials are most likely to be electrical conductors? I'm going to read the list to you and I want you to give me a wave if you think the material would make a good electrical conductor.

Ready? Here it goes: wood, plastics, metals, fabrics.

How did you get on? Metals, metals make good electrical conductors.

Which part of scientific investigations are most likely to be represented by charts and tables? Is it the predictions, the methods, the results, or the tables? This time, let's do hands up for A, predictions.

Hands up for B, methods.

Hands up for C, results.

And hands up for D, tables.

Yeah, it's the results that are most likely to be represented by charts and tables.

Task A, make a circuit to test a range of metals to see if they're electrical conductors or insulators.

Some examples here of metals you might find include: aluminium drinks cans, stainless steel cutlery, copper piping, iron nails, gold, silver, platinum jewellery, brass door handles, bronze ornaments.

You need to record your results in a table.

Pause the video now, time to do some investigating.

Electrical conductors, you might have found that stainless steel, silver, aluminium, iron, copper, brass, and bronze were all electrical conductors.

The bulb lit up with all of the metals, so they must all be electrical conductors.

Did you get similar results? If you want to pause the video and discuss your results, comparing them to mine, do that now.

Last part of the lesson now, conductivity and uses of metals.

These are Izzy's results.

Here are her electrical conductors.

There's stainless steel, silver, aluminium, iron, copper, brass, and bronze.

Did your results show the same thing? Pause the video now just to discuss it quickly with your partner.

All of the metals she tested were electrical conductors.

Andeep was correct about metals.

"I think all metals conduct electricity," he said.

All metals do conduct electricity.

Andeep's older brother says, "Did you know that some metals conduct electricity better than others?" "The bulb lit up brightly for all the metals I tested so how do we know that some metals are better electrical conductors than others?" Electricians and electrical engineers use special equipment that tells us how well electricity flows through different materials.

Metals like the ones below are the best materials for conducting electricity.

Copper, gold, aluminium and silver.

Metals like tungsten, lead and titanium are not so good at conducting electricity.

However, they still do conduct some electricity, so they're not electrical insulators.

Metals are chosen for particular jobs based on their properties.

Copper is one of the most effective electrical conductors, so it's often used in overhead telephone cables.

Here we can see some telephone wires on a post.

Titanium is one of the least conducted metals.

It can withstand very high temperatures, so it's often used when building parts of aircraft.

Gold and silver are great electrical conductors, but they're very expensive, so they're used only for small parts on circuit boards.

Copper is not as conductive as silver, but much cheaper and easier to bend and rapid into wires.

Here we can see some copper wires coated in plastic.

This apple is made from copper wire.

It comes from Africa.

And the copper wire was saved.

It was reused from old wires, old cables that have been thrown away.

True or false? All metals are equally good at conducting electricity.

Hands up for true.

Hands up for false.

Yes, false.

They're not all equally as good at conducting electricity.

Now have a look at these answers.

Which one do you think explains that the best? A, All metals conduct electricity, but some metals are better than others.

Or B, Some metals conduct electricity, but some are electrical insulators.

Which of those is the best explanation? Hands up for A.

Hands up For B.

It's A, all metals conduct electricity, but some are better conductors of electricity than others.

Which of the following items are likely to be made using metals which are good conductors.

Now I'm gonna read through the list and we're gonna do a double hand wave, okay? When we get to ones that you think are likely to be made using metals which are good conductors.

Here we go.

A, the outer casing on electrical appliances.

B, electrical wires.

C, bathroom equipment and appliances.

D, parts of a circuit board.

Ready for the answers? Yes, there are two, two correct answers.

Electrical wires and parts of a circuit board are likely to be made using metals which are good conductors.

Task B now.

Choose three different metals to research.

For each metal, try to find out a range of things that it's used for.

Conductivity, how well does it conduct electricity? And how its properties make it useful.

Present your research.

This could be in a slideshow, on a poster, a card game, or another way.

Pause the video now.

I am sure you enjoyed doing that research.

Research three metals and present your findings.

Aluminium.

uses: aeroplanes , cars, cans, electrical wiring, and saucepans.

Aluminium is a good electrical conductor.

It is lightweight but strong, making it useful to make vehicles.

Silver.

Uses: jewellery, electronics, and tableware.

Silver is easy to shape and is an excellent conductor of heat and electricity.

Titanium.

Uses: aeroplanes , spacecraft, golf clubs, bicycles and crutches.

Titanium is a poor electrical conductor, but it does not rust and can cope with very high temperatures.

You may have chosen different metals and presented your findings differently.

So let's think about all that we've learned in our lesson today.

Metals are very useful materials with properties such as strength, stiffness, and electrical conductivity.

Results of scientific inquiries can be recorded and presented in different ways including charts and tables.

All metals conduct electricity, but some metals are better electrical conductors than others.

Materials are chosen for particular jobs based on their properties.

Well done for your learning today and especially for all that research you did.

Good work.

See you next time.

Bye.