Compass Deflection Near a Wire Carrying Current

Begin with Sort Forces by Field Type, then the field line sheet. Use the three data sheets as lab style practice, and the force calculation sheet once students are comfortable with multiplying and dividing.

Repeat Oersted's 1820 compass test and graph needle angle against current and distance from the wire. The directions on the page read: Read about the discovery and the investigation. Study the diagram and both tables, then answer 1 and 2. An answer key is included.

Yes, both. We made it for 8th grade energy, and it works the same at home or at school. At home, a student can work through it alone and then go over it with you, which shows quickly what is solid and what needs another look. In class it works as independent practice, homework or a warm-up, and you can print one copy or a full set.

In 1820 Hans Christian Oersted saw a compass needle move each time he sent a current through a nearby wire. A compass needle is a small magnet, so the current had to make a magnetic field. Compass Deflection Near a Wire Carrying Current has students graph needle angles against current and distance.

No. A charged object can also attract a neutral one, so a pull alone does not prove both are charged. Only a push apart proves two objects carry like charges. Deduce Charges From Attraction and Repulsion Tests uses this rule to identify six objects.

Gravitational, electric and magnetic forces all act through fields. Gravity pulls on anything with mass, electric fields surround charged objects and magnetic fields surround magnets and wires with a current. Sort Forces by Field Type has students sort everyday examples.