Community Outreach with Play-Doh® Electronics

Abstract

It never fails: you’re in your office and the phone rings. Your department head says, “Hi! Fifty kids are coming to campus in 30 minutes. Can you meet with them and give them a one-hour hands-on activity that will make them excited about physics?” Likely you’ll run to your demonstration room and grab anything that’ll generate a bright light or cause something to explode or levitate, right? In recent years, we’ve taken a more systematic approach to hosting visitors by developing a ready-to-go hands-on activity that provides opportunities for learning about DC electric circuits.