New
New
Year 5

Harry Beck and circuit diagrams

I can relate Harry Beck's work to circuit diagrams and draw my own.

New
New
Year 5

Harry Beck and circuit diagrams

I can relate Harry Beck's work to circuit diagrams and draw my own.

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Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. Harry Beck was inspired by circuit diagrams when he developed the London Underground map.
  2. Electric vehicle prototypes need pulleys, a motor, a battery pack, axle and a switch to work.
  3. Electrical designs need circuit diagrams.
  4. Tinkercad can be used to draw electric circuits.

Keywords

  • Circuit diagram - a simple drawing showing how parts of an electrical system are connected

  • Electrical components - parts of an electrical circuit

  • Tinkercad - an online computer aided design application

  • Workspace - area where objects are created and changed

Common misconception

All circuits have multiple pathways (like the underground map).

A series circuit is a continuous loop where all the components are connected one after another along the same path.


To help you plan your year 5 design and technology lesson on: Harry Beck and circuit diagrams, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...

Equipment

Access to Tinkercad.

Licence

This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2025), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0 except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).

Lesson video

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Prior knowledge starter quiz

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6 Questions

Q1.
A powers things like torches.
Correct Answer: battery, cell
Q2.
What is the job of a motor in a circuit?
Correct answer: to spin or turn
to give out light
to make a sound
Q3.
What is the job of a bulb in a circuit?
to spin or turn
Correct answer: to give out light
to make a sound
Q4.
We use a to turn a circuit on or off.
Correct Answer: switch
Q5.
A __________ is the path electricity travels.
Correct answer: circuit
bulb
motor
Q6.
Which of these methods of travel uses a battery to power its movement?
petrol car
Correct answer: electric car
walking

Assessment exit quiz

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4 Questions

Q1.
What inspired Harry Beck’s design of the London Underground map?
a road map
a book of train routes
Correct answer: an electrical circuit diagram
Q2.
Tinkercad can be used to draw diagrams.
Correct Answer: circuit
Q3.
Which circuit component is shown in the diagram?
An image in a quiz
cell
switch
Correct answer: motor
Q4.
Put these steps in order to build a simple electric circuit in Tinkercad.
1 - open the workspace
2 - drag in the battery and motor
3 - connect wires
4 - test the circuit

Additional material

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