What Are Insulators

An insulator is a material that does not let electric current flow through it easily. Electric current is the movement of electricity through a material. Insulators are important because they help keep us safe from electricity.

Many common materials are insulators. Rubber is an insulator, which is why electricians wear rubber gloves when working with electricity. Plastic is also an insulator. Look at any electrical wire in your home. You will see that the metal wire inside is covered with plastic. The plastic coating stops the electricity from escaping and touching you. Wood and glass are insulators too. That is why wooden or plastic handles are used on tools that work with electricity.

Insulators are different from conductors. Conductors are materials that let electric current flow through them easily. Metals like copper and aluminum are good conductors. That is why the wires inside the plastic coating are made of metal. The metal carries the electricity where it needs to go, and the plastic insulator keeps it safely inside.

Think of insulators like a tunnel for electricity. The conductor is like the road inside the tunnel where cars travel. The insulator is like the tunnel walls that keep the cars from going off the road. Without insulators, electricity could go places we do not want it to go, which could be dangerous.