Name __________________________________
Date
________________________
Teacher ________________________________
Period ________________________
HANDS-ON
ACTIVITY 4 – BUILDING SERIES AND PARALLEL CIRCUITS
BACKGROUND
Make sure you read the background in Activity 3 before doing this activity.
WIRING DIRECTIONS
Materials per group of two: one or two D-cells and holders, three lightbulbs and holders, six
pieces of insulated wire with stripped ends (or six wires with alligator clips on each end)
1. Below are diagrams showing three bulbs in series and in parallel. Build these same circuits
using one or two 1.5-volt D-cells (flashlight-type), three bulbs, some wire with stripped ends,
and alligator clips to help hold wires together. Connecting wires through holes in a circuit
board will help you keep your wiring in a rectangular pattern. (Christmas tree lights make
good sources for lightbulbs.)
2. Record how the brightnesses of the bulbs in the series and parallel circuits change as you
increase the bulbs in the circuits from one to two to three.
SERIES CIRCUIT
PARALLEL CIRCUIT
Note: Your homemade circuits, especially the parallel circuits, will look quite a bit different from
the neat rectangular diagrams shown above (rectangles will look more like circles).
Privacy Statement and Copyright © 1999-2004 by Wheeling Jesuit
University/the NASA-supported Classroom of the Future program. All rights reserved.
Some images copyright © 2004 www.clipart.com.
Activity 4 - Page 1/3
Name __________________________________
Date
________________________
Teacher ________________________________
Period ________________________
HANDS-ON
ACTIVITY 4 – BUILDING SERIES AND PARALLEL CIRCUITS
QUESTIONS
SERIES CIRCUIT
PARALLEL
CIRCUIT
1. Which bulbs are brighter?
a. The three bulbs wired in series. b. The three bulbs wired in parallel. c. They're the same.
2. What happens to the brightness as you add bulbs in series?
a. The bulbs get brighter. b. The bulbs get dimmer. c. The bulbs stay the same.
3. What happens to the brightness as you add bulbs in parallel?
a. The bulbs get brighter. b. The bulbs get dimmer. c. The bulbs stay the same.
4. What do you think these lighting differences suggest about the voltage across the bulbs in
series circuits?
a. The voltage across each bulb is less each time a similar bulb is added.
b. The voltage across each bulb is more each time a similar bulb is added.
c. The voltage across each bulb stays the same each time a similar bulb is added.
5. What do you think these lighting differences suggest about the voltage across the bulbs in
parallel circuits?
a. The voltage across each bulb is less each time a similar bulb is added.
b. The voltage across each bulb is more each time a similar bulb is added.
c. The voltage across each bulb stays the same each time a similar bulb is added.
Privacy Statement and Copyright © 1999-2004 by Wheeling Jesuit
University/the NASA-supported Classroom of the Future program. All rights reserved.
Some images copyright © 2004 www.clipart.com.
Activity 4 - Page 2/3