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Start by showing how a circuit is created by including a power source (like a battery) with a load (like a light bulb) in a complete loop. (Snap Circuits would be perfect for this!)
Show them Crack the Circuit: Free Draw to show how your real-life circuit could be modeled with a circuit diagram.
Introduce them to the game, by completing level 1 on the board. Get them to complete as many levels as they can.
Link: https://universeandmore.com/crack-the-circuit/
At an appropriate interval, ask them to share a level that they found interesting (e.g., a challenge they solved, a frustration they could not solve, the highest level they reached, etc.). Give them a chance to verbalize what they learned and hear the logic they used along the way. Maybe ask them to show a variety of ways to solve the same circuit, or show them a variant on the board and ask if that would accomplish the same thing.
Preview these concepts: * Lights are only one type of load. The same diagram could be made for motors, heaters, speakers, etc. * Batteries are only one type of power source. The two-pronged outlets serve the same purpose, and the power cords for your appliances are actually two wires–one for each prong–to make the loop. * Switches are sometimes in disguise–and called sensors. For example, the hand drier “knows” when to turn on and off, because a switch is opened or closed (usually depending on the reflection of an invisible infrared beam). The car “knows” to lock the doors with a motor that is connected to an accelerometer-based sensor.
