Science and Technology

Grade 6: Energy and Control: Electricity	Achievement Level
Overall Expectations	1	2	3	4
•demonstrate understanding that electrical energy can be transformed into other forms of energy;
•design and construct a variety of electrical circuits and investigate ways in which electrical energy is transformed into other forms of energy;
•identify uses of electricity in the home and community and evaluate the impact of these uses on both our quality of life and the environment.
Specific Expectations
Understanding Basic Concepts
•investigate ways in which electrical energy can be transformed into other forms of energy (e.g., into light, heat, and sound);
•compare the conductivity of a variety of solids and liquids;
•identify, through experimentation, ways in which chemical energy can be transformed into electrical energy (e.g., build a circuit using a lemon or a potato);
•compare the characteristics of current and static electricity;
•describe the relationship between electricity and magnetism in an electromagnetic device;
•identify, through observation, the effects of using different types of core materials in building an electromagnet;
•identify different types of switches that are used to control electrical devices (e.g., contact, tilt) and explain the key differences among them (e.g., differences in design, use).
Developing Skills of Inquiry, Design, and Communication
•formulate questions about and identify needs and problems related to the properties or uses of electrical energy, and explore possible answers and solutions (e.g., compare some sources of electrical energy used in the past, such as coal, with sources used today, such as uranium and moving water, and evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of each);
•plan investigations for some of these answers and solutions, identifying variables that need to be held constant to ensure a fair test and identifying criteria for assessing solutions;
•use appropriate vocabulary, including correct science and technology terminology, in describing their investigations and observations (e.g., use terms such as current, battery, circuit, conductor, insulator; positive (plus) and negative (minus) charges for electrically charged materials; north pole and south pole for magnetic materials);
•compile data gathered through investigation in order to record and present results, using tally charts, tables, labelled graphs, and scatter plots produced by hand or with a computer (e.g., record in a journal all daily uses of electrical energy for a week, classify the various uses, and present the findings using tables and graphs);
•communicate the procedures and results of investigations for specific purposes and to specific audiences, using media works, oral presentations, written notes and descriptions, drawings, and charts (e.g., draw a diagram of an electrical circuit using appropriate symbols; create a brochure outlining safe and unsafe uses of electricity; create a table showing different factors that could lead to a decrease in consumption of electrical energy in the home and at school);
•design and build electrical circuits (e.g., series circuits and parallel circuits) and describe the function of their component parts (e.g., switches, power source);
•build and test an electrical circuit that performs a useful function, and draw a diagram of it using appropriate electrical symbols;
•construct series circuits (e.g., logical AND) and parallel circuits (e.g., logical OR) to control a device, and compare their characteristics;
•design and construct an electrical system that operates a device in a controlled way (e.g., a switch provides a controlled input, and lamps, buzzers, or motors produce the output).
Relating Science and Technology to the World Outside the School
•identify sources of electricity and state whether the sources are renewable or non-renewable;
•recognize the use of electromagnets in motors and generators;
•describe the electrical conversions in everyday devices or systems (e.g., electrical energy to heat energy in a toaster; electrical energy to mechanical energy in an electric mixer);
•identify the different ways electricity is produced (e.g., by batteries using chemical energy; by dams using water power; by generating stations using nuclear energy) and evaluate the effect of different production methods on natural resources and living things in the environment;
•describe conditions that could affect the consumption of electrical energy in the home and at school (e.g., seasonal variations in heat and light requirements);
•identify devices that use electricity to send signals (e.g., televisions, telephones, radios, computers);
•describe how electricity was discovered and harnessed for use (e.g., name some inventions) and discuss whether we are more or less dependent on electricity than people in the past;
•develop a plan for reducing electricity consumption at home or at school, and assess how this change could affect the economy (e.g., jobs) and our use of natural resources.
Student Name:

 Expectations: Copyright The Queen's Printer for Ontario, 1998.  Format: Copyright B.Phillips, 1998.