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LED Greeting Cards

A 4th Grade STEM Lesson

Rachel Charette

May 2023

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Notes for Teachers

This activity does not teach electric circuits, but it is an activity using the knowledge of circuits and how to correct one that doesn’t close properly.

This activity will take about 60-90 minutes. (Give students time to draw and color their greeting card image.)

Students work independently.

List of Materials

coin cell batteries
LED lights
adhesive copper tape
white cardstock
coloring materials
Something sharp to cut opening for the lights (knife blade, scissor tip)

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Standards

Physical Science:

4.P4U1.2

Develop and use a model that explains how energy is moved from place to place through electric currents.

Energy is present whenever there are moving objects, sound, light, or heat.

Energy can be moved from place to place by moving objects or through sound or light, or electric currents.

Science and Engineering Practices:

● develop and use models

● construct explanations and design solutions

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Objective(s):

Today, students will use their knowledge of electric circuits to create a light up greeting card.

Students will understand that positives and negatives need to follow each other to create a working circuit (materials can’t go back and forth between positive and negative in the pathway).

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Agenda (60-90 minutes)

Draw/design and color an image on white cardstock that has a place for at least one LED light.

Complete a circuit pathway on the backside of the paper using a cell battery, LED light and copper tape.

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Can we create a circuit and have a button battery light up LED lights?

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Hands-on Activity Instructions

Students work independently on their own card.

Students will design a card or picture that includes placement for 1-4 LED lights.

Display this blog post from Makerspaces.com to have students visually follow along.

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Hands-on Activity �Troubleshooting

Have students identify the long (+) and short (-) ends of the LED lights before bending them.

Do your best to keep the copper tape from wrinkling or bubbling.

Have students make an image with one light to start; the pathways get more complicated with multiple lights.

A cell battery really only has the power to light a single light- more lights in the design will require more batteries.

The battery must touch the end of the copper tape path on the opposite side of the paper when the card is closed.

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Hands-on Activity

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Assessment

Did students create a complete and closed circuit?

Do the lights work?

If there was an issue, can students find where the circuit loses connection?

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Differentiation

Provide students with a template where they just need to trace the created pathway with the copper tape.

The coloring image is also created for them if they are stuck on what to design.

Remediation

Extension/Enrichment

Students can make an additional card or image that has multiple lights. They will be challenged to keep the pathway organized by keeping all positives on one side of the circuit and all negatives on the other side.