A potential difference supplied by the battery drives current around a closed conducting circuit. The same steady current passes through every part of this single-loop model. Opening the switch stops that current throughout the loop. The moving markers represent conventional current direction; they are not a depiction of electrons speeding around an actual wire.
Light, sound and electricity · Discover & try
What does a bulb need to light?
Reading level 3 of 5 · IndependentChange
Word help
circuit
A connected route for electric current.
voltage
A potential difference that can drive current.
Watch · Try · Explain
See how it works
The interactive activity is loading.
Virtual low-voltage DC loop with a fixed resistive load; never a wiring instruction for mains electricity.
What to look for
- The return path matters
- An open switch stops steady current
- Charge continues through the load
Explain what you noticed
Both wires touch a bulb, but one ends before reaching the second battery terminal. What is needed?
Keep this idea: A conducting route must connect through the load and back to the battery.
Follow the sources
Source material checked 2026-10-28. Explanations and activities by Nepedia. Source links do not imply endorsement.
Keep following the idea
Next discovery →