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Clings and Swings front cover

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Clings and Swings

Join Vince as a rub changes what his balloons do: paper lifts, a balloon stays on a wall, and a hanging pair swings apart. Compare what happens after a damp wipe and another try.

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A balloon that falls

Pages 1–2
Vince holds a red balloon against the wall, then watches it fall when he lets go.

Stay here, balloon. Down it goes.

Explore together · A first observation

Vince holds a red balloon against the wall, then watches it fall when he lets go. This first try gives Vince something to compare with later. A falling balloon is not proof that it has no electric charge.

Ask together: What changes when Vince takes his hand away?

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Paper lifts before a touch

Pages 3–4
Vince rubs the red balloon with wool, then small tissue scraps lift across a gap beneath it.

I try a rub. My paper jumps!

Explore together · Attraction across a gap

Vince rubs the red balloon with wool, then small tissue scraps lift across a gap beneath it. Rubbing suitable dry materials can leave a balloon charged. It can attract very light paper before contact; attraction alone does not mean the paper has opposite overall charge.

Ask together: What do you notice in the space between the paper and balloon?

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Another try at the wall

Pages 5–6
Vince places the rubbed balloon against the wall; it stays after his hands move away.

Back to the wall. Now it stays.

Explore together · Clinging to a wall

Vince places the rubbed balloon against the wall; it stays after his hands move away. A sufficiently charged light balloon can cling to a suitable wall. It touches the wall rather than floating freely, and the result depends on the surface and conditions.

Ask together: What is different from Vince’s first wall try?

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A rub for the second balloon

Pages 7–8
Vince lifts the red balloon while the teal one waits in the basket, then rubs the teal balloon with wool.

Can they hang together? A rub for this one, too.

Explore together · Preparing a comparison

Vince lifts the red balloon while the teal one waits in the basket, then rubs the teal balloon with wool. Treating two comparable balloons with the same cloth can give them the same kind of charge. Their colours do not determine their electrical behaviour.

Ask together: What is Vince trying with the second balloon?

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The pair swings apart

Pages 9–10
A grown-up holds both threads from above. Vince releases the balloons, and they hang apart with his hands clear.

I let them go. They swing apart!

Explore together · Repulsion with free movement

A grown-up holds both threads from above. Vince releases the balloons, and they hang apart with his hands clear. Similarly charged balloons can repel. The threads support their weight and allow sideways movement; no hand is holding the lower balloons apart.

Ask together: Where are the hands and threads when the balloons move apart?

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A damp wipe changes the gap

Pages 11–12
A damp cloth wipes the red balloon; in the following view the suspended pair hangs together again.

Let's try a damp wipe. Together again.

Explore together · Reducing repulsion

A damp cloth wipes the red balloon; in the following view the suspended pair hangs together again. Damp wiping can reduce electric charge and repulsion. The story includes wiping both balloons, with one representative wipe pictured. Coming together does not prove attraction or complete removal of every charge.

Ask together: What changes before the pair hangs together again?

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A place for each

Pages 13–14
After drying and rubbing again, Vince gives the red and teal balloons separate places against the wall.

Dry again. Rub again. A space for each.

Explore together · Trying again and comparing

After drying and rubbing again, Vince gives the red and teal balloons separate places against the wall. Drying and re-rubbing can restore observable effects. These are chosen wall positions with loose strings below; the gap is not a measurement of the earlier freely suspended repulsion.

Ask together: How is this last wall scene different from the beginning?

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A quiet drawing

Pages 15–16
Vince draws the hanging balloons together and apart in his notebook before bed.

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For grown-ups

Pages 17–18
Two-page grown-up guide about rubbing, attraction, repulsion, damp wiping, activity conditions and adult handling. Full text is in the transcript.

For Grown-Ups Vince changes what his balloons do. Look at the rubbing, the gaps and the strings. The pictures show one set of results; different materials or damp weather can change them. Rubbing and attracting Rubbing suitable materials together can leave an imbalance of electric charge. A charged balloon can attract very light paper before touching it. Charges within an electrically neutral object can shift slightly, so attraction does not mean both objects have opposite overall charges. A sufficiently charged, lightweight balloon can cling to a suitable clean wall. It must touch the wall; it is not floating freely. The effect does not last forever, and some surfaces work better than others. Together and apart Two latex balloons rubbed with the same wool cloth commonly acquire the same kind of charge and repel. Their colours do not cause the difference. The threads hold their weight and let them move sideways; nobody is pulling their lower ends apart. A damp wipe can help charge leave the balloons and reduce the repulsion. In the story, both are wiped, then allowed to dry before the wool is tried again. Touching once may not remove charge from every part of a balloon. Notice together What moves before anything touches? Where do the threads hold the balloons? What changes before the pair comes together again? Compare the beginning with the last wall scene. If a grown-up demonstrates You can explore the pictures without using balloons. Balloons and broken pieces can choke. Follow product age guidance; a grown-up inflates, ties and handles the materials. Keep loose balloons, fragments and tissue away from young children and mouths; discard fragments immediately. Keep strings away from necks and sleeping spaces. Avoid latex if allergic. For a demonstration, use clean, dry materials in still air and test a small effect first. Wall material, handling and humidity matter. A different result is something to notice, too. Source notes and activity conditions accompany the online edition.

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Sources and evidence

  1. Rubbing suitable dry latex balloons with wool can leave them electrically charged; dry re-rubbing can restore observable effects after discharge.

    Balloon Electroscope — Science World

    Shocking Static Electricity — Science North

    Material pair, cleanliness, humidity and handling matter; results are not guaranteed.

    Rubbing redistributes charge rather than creating it from nothing; different material pairs can behave differently.

  2. A rubbed balloon can attract very light dry tissue scraps across a small air gap before contact; neutral objects can be attracted by polarization.

    Investigating static electricity — Northumbria University NUSTEM

    Electroscope — Exploratorium

    Very light, separated dry tissue and still air make the small effect easier to observe; not every scrap will lift.

    Attraction alone does not establish opposite overall charges. Contact can change what happens next.

  3. A sufficiently charged light balloon can cling to a suitable clean wall after the hand is removed.

    Shocking Static Electricity — Science North

    Electrostatic charges / Forces due to electric charges — Institute of Physics

    Wall surface, weight, charge and humidity matter; no particular duration or all-surface result is promised.

    The balloon touches the wall. The first fall is a comparison episode, not a measurement of zero charge.

  4. Two comparable balloons rubbed with the same wool cloth can repel when freely suspended near each other.

    Balloon Electroscope — Science World

    Electrostatic charges / Forces due to electric charges — Institute of Physics

    Both comparable balloons need sufficient charge; colour does not determine the effect.

    Threads support the balloons and permit sideways movement. Keep them clear of surfaces and airflow; the picture is not a measured angle.

  5. Damp wiping can reduce the balloons’ charge so the suspended pair no longer stays apart; after drying, rubbing can make the effect observable again.

    Shocking Static Electricity — Science North

    Balloon Electroscope — Science World

    Wipe both surfaces. A touch at one point may leave charge elsewhere, and a smaller gap does not prove complete neutralization.

    Allow the balloons to dry before rubbing again. Conditions and handling can change the result.

  6. These activities depend on materials, humidity and handling, and need grown-up handling of balloons and strings.

    Investigating static electricity — Northumbria University NUSTEM

    Shocking Static Electricity — Science North

    Pictures can be explored without handling balloons. Follow product age guidance; a grown-up inflates, ties and handles the materials.

    Balloons and fragments can choke. Keep loose balloons, fragments and tissue away from young children and mouths; discard fragments immediately. Keep strings away from necks and sleeping spaces. Avoid latex if allergic.

A story worth keeping?

Read it here as often as you like. The physical edition is coming soon.

Explore the physical editionFind another story

Water and Wind

Water and Wind, pages 1–2: Wind moves the pinwheel.

Spread 1 / 12

Wind tickles my cheek. Round goes my pinwheel.

Explore the science

Wind & forcesPages 1–2

Wind moves the pinwheel. Wind is moving air. Vince feels it on his cheek and sees it push the pinwheel's angled blades.

Ask together: What tells you that the air is moving?

Currents & eddiesPages 3–4

Water passes the rock. A leaf circles behind it. Most water passes the rock; some circles back in an eddy. Laminar flow is orderly; turbulence is irregular, mixing motion. A swirl alone cannot distinguish them.

Ask together: How does the leaf move compared with the water passing the rock?

Waves & energyPages 5–6

Waves spread from the stream. The duck bobs. The falling stream makes waves that carry energy outward and make the toys bob. The stream's current also carries toys along. Bobbing and drifting are different motions.

Ask together: What moves up and down? What moves along the pond?

BuoyancyPages 7–8

A duck floats. A pebble sinks. Water pushes upward on both objects. This buoyancy balances the duck's weight, but not the pebble's. The pebble's splash makes the rings on the next spread.

Ask together: Where is each object compared with the surface?

When waves meetPages 9–10

Two wave patterns approach one another. When gentle waves overlap, their heights add, briefly raising or lowering the surface. This interference does not erase the waves; they continue through one another.

Ask together: What might happen where the two patterns meet?

Surface tensionPages 11–12

Tiny dents appear beneath the strider’s legs. Surface tension helps support the strider where its water-repellent legs dent the water. The duck floats mainly by displacing water.

Ask together: What do you notice where its legs meet the water?

Suction & pressurePages 13–14

The duck bubbles, fills and squirts. Squeeze underwater: air bubbles out. Release with the opening submerged: the elastic duck springs back, lowering pressure inside. The surrounding water pressure pushes water in. Squeeze above water: water exits through that same opening.

Ask together: What changes when Vince squeezes and then lets go?

Lift & gravityPages 15–16

A paper plane glides forward and down. The throw starts the plane moving. Airflow around its wings produces lift and turns air downward. Gravity pulls down; drag resists motion. In still air, the plane glides forward and gradually descends.

Ask together: Where might the plane go next?

ViscosityPages 17–18

Milk runs. Honey stretches into a thread. Honey's greater viscosity means greater resistance to flow. It makes a slow thread while milk runs readily. Temperature and pouring method also matter; this snack is an observation, not a controlled test.

Ask together: How do the milk and honey move differently?

Draining & swirlingPages 19–20

Foam curves inward toward the drain. Gravity drives water through the drain. Existing turning motion can become a curved inward flow, traced by foam. Here water travels to the outlet, unlike waves crossing the pond. Not every drain swirls.

Ask together: Can you follow the foam toward the drain?

Scientific observationPages 21–22

Vince sketches what he noticed. Vince records something he noticed. Drawings, marks or words let him return to an observation. He does not need all the answers.

Ask together: Which earlier picture matches one of his drawings?

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