3 exciting experiments with batteries for and teenagers
But always remember… safety first!
Batteries are great fun to experiment with, but whenever small (and large) hands are involved in anything like this, safety always has to come first. So always provide close supervision and only carry out tests with children who are old enough to understand these safety rules:
- Never put batteries or magnets in your mouth, nose, ears or other parts of your body.
- Do not cut or crush batteries. Damaging a battery may release the acid inside, which could cause burns.
- If a battery becomes hot during an experiment, it is not suitable for whatever you are doing. Try using another battery.
- Preferably wear plastic gloves.
- Never conduct an experiment without an adult supervising.
Safety on point? Then we have 5 really great experiments for you to let your little scientists loose on. Have fun!
Experiment 1: Battery ballerina
This first experiment is for the truly creative. It requires nimble fingers (and patience). But it’s well worth the trouble, because at the end of all that clever craftwork, you’ll have a beautiful ballerina who can do pirouettes under her own power. Impressive!
What do you need?
- A piece of copper wire (not too thin, otherwise it won’t work)
- 3 neodymium disc magnets (12 mm in diameter x 3 mm high)
- 1 AA battery
- Wire-cutters
- Crepe paper or a piece of fabric and (warm) glue for her skirt
Follow these 6 steps to make your pirouetting ballerina:
- Use the wire-cutters to snip off a length of copper wire approximately 25 cm long. Lay it on the template and bend the wire as shown in the drawing. The shape you make needs to be as symmetrical as possible.
- Wind the bottom piece of the copper wire around the battery. Remove the battery and carefully widen the circular opening with your fingers.
- Place the 3 neodymium magnets under the negative end of the battery.
- Place your copper wire 'motor' on top of the battery, so that it is in contact with the positive pole. The round bottom of the copper wire should be low enough so that the magnets are completely surrounded. If your copper wire is too long, cut it to size to suit your design.
- And she’s off! Your ballerina should now begin to revolve. Don’t panic if it doesn’t work at first. It may take a little patience to bend the copper wire the right way. Make small adjustments until your dancer can do her pirouettes without wobbling.
- Make a skirt for your ballerina by cutting out a small circle in crepe paper or fabric and snipping out a small hole in the middle. Slip it over the copper wire to the ballerina and fix in place with a little glue.
Everything working okay? Then it’s time to show off your homemade ‘batterina’ to everyone!
(You can watch this video in French here)
Experiment 2: Musical lemons
You probably don’t keep your batteries in the fruit bowl. But did you know that the bowl might contain something that can be used to generate energy – just like a battery? Strange though it may sound, it’s a lemon! OK, so it may only be very low voltage (about 0.8 volts per lemon), but it's a good start. So imagine what happens if you link several lemons together, and then connect a music box or a lamp to them? Now that’s worth experimenting with!
(You can watch this video in French here)
Experiment 3: String of lights
Horrible weather outside? Here’s an experiment that’s ideal for lighting up a dark day. Make a colourful string of lights using just a few LED lamps and a battery. Here’s how:
- Take the LED lamps you want. Make sure you choose your favourite colours!
- Connect them with pliers, entwining the positive side of the first light with the negative side of the next, and so on.
- Connect the ends to the poles of a 9-volt battery.
And if you’ve done everything correctly, the lamps should light up immediately.
(You can watch this video in French here)
Want to let us know how well your experiment went or if you have any other good ideas for experimenting with batteries? Share your results on social media and tag us!
