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Build Your Own Remote Control Light Switch Review

Switch your lights on and off with a remote control!

Courtesy of Scholastic

How cool would it be to turn the lights on and off without actually getting up to flick the switch? Well, here's your chance to build your own remote control light switch!

Electricity 411

The remote control is an electronic device so before you start building it, you've got to be savvy in the electrical department.

Electricity is the energy you use every day to light your room or run your computer.

Everything in the world is made up of extremely tiny particles called atoms.

An atom is made up of photons, neutrons, electrons, and a nucleus.

Electrons move inside the atom, and from one atom to another.

This movement of electrons is called an electric current, which is what allows the remote light switch to work.

Ready to Assemble

Now that you've got the lowdown on electricity, you can start building the remote control. The kit comes with 10 pieces, including a plastic light switch case, a capacitor, which stores the electricity, and a resistor, which reduces the flow of electricity in a circuit. Just follow the directions provided in the book - you may need a little help from the 'rents because the electrical terms and scientific vocab get a little confusing at times.

Did U Know?

The first remote controls were developed during World War I for military purposes.

The first TV remote control, called Lazy Bones, was created in the 1950s.

Today, doctors can perform surgeries by remote control. The first remote surgery was in 2001, when a doctor in New York operated on a patient 4,000 miles away in France.