Electric Current

When i go outside at night, i need to take a torch with me to see where me are going. When i switch on the torch, it lights up. The light is made by electricity. This is not the same as static electricity, but is the sort of electricity which flows through wires and other pieces of metal. When electricity flows, i say there is an electric current.

In a torch the electricity comes from a battery. A battery makes electricity when chemicals inside it join together. Have you anything worked by batteries?

If i took a torch to pieces, i would find that it has many parts. It is made up of a bulb, one or two batteries, and a switch. These parts are joined together by pieces of metal. The metal makes a path where electricity can flow from the battery to the bulb, and back. This kind of path is an electric circuit which usually has a switch in it. When the switch are turned 'OFF', it leaves a gap in the circuit and no electricity can flow through.