1. Source
A battery pushes charges around a loop.
The battery gives the circuit energy. A bulb cannot light from only one battery terminal.
Electric Circuits
Build a Complete Path
Learn why a bulb lights, fix broken loops, compare series and parallel paths, then build your own working circuits.
Finish the guided lab to unlock Build.
2. Path
Wires make the path.
Current can move only when there is an unbroken conducting path from one battery end to the other.
3. Load
A bulb changes electrical energy into light.
A load is the useful part of a circuit. Motors, buzzers, and bulbs are all loads.
4. Control
A switch opens or closes the loop.
Closed switches let current move. Open switches leave a gap, so the bulb stays off.
Intro 1 of 4
Click the highlighted box.
Start with Source. Read it, then click it.
What Flows
Charges are already in the wires.
In metal wires, tiny negative charges called electrons can drift when the circuit is closed.
Current
Current is flow rate.
Current means how much charge passes a point each second. More current usually means a brighter bulb.
Voltage
Voltage is the push from the source.
A battery creates an energy difference between its ends. That difference can push charges around a closed loop.
Question 1