Charge It Up

Like most families, you probably get through tons of batteries playing with your electronic toys – especially at Christmas! But how do batteries work?

Well, in one part of the battery there are some very excited electrons who are trying as hard as they can to get to the other side of the battery.  However, there’s acid in the middle which stops them just hopping over.

Your toy is a bit like a bridge – the electrons race around it to get to the other side of the battery, powering the toy on its way.  But when all the electrons are used up, the batteries are dead.

These days, you’ll find most electronic gadgets use rechargeable batteries.  These batteries are pretty clever because they can top up their electrons using the electricity from the plug sockets in our houses.  Short cables called chargers are used to attach the devices to the mains electricity.

How many different chargers do you have in your house?

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