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Activity
It's About Time

Renewable Energy Sources - Solar and Wind

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
There has been a huge solar energy spill! Let's go outside to play in it. This lesson includes multiple experiments showcasing solar and wind energies. Scholars build a solar heater and an anemometer before testing the results. The...
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Lesson Plan
National Wildlife Federation

I’ve Got the POWER! Solar Energy Potential at Your School

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
Should every school have solar panels? The 19th lesson in a series of 21 has scholars research the feasibility of using solar panels at their school. They begin by gathering data on the solar energy in the area before estimating the...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Solar Kit Lesson #8 - Positioning Solar Panels II: Explorations with Stationary Panels

For Teachers 6th - 9th
This lesson is preparation-intensive, but well worth the investment. You will construct five or six portable testing stations with which lab groups will gather data on the best position for collecting sunlight with a solar panel. This is...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Alternative Energy

For Teachers 4th - 5th
Students discover types of energy. For this physics lesson, students discuss ways to power a car a design a model car kit with an alternative form of energy.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Solar Kit Lesson #7 - Positioning Solar Panels I: Explorations with Tracking

For Teachers 6th - 9th
In this first part of a two-part lesson, learners track and record the sun's azimuth using a solar panel. They graph and analyze the data to identify relationships among the time of day, the altitude and azimuth of the sun, and the...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Power Crisis in California

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students read an online CNNfyi.com article related to the energy crisis in California. They calculate the monthly cost of running household appliances. They develop a list of alternative methods of energy sources.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Think GREEN - Utilizing Renewable Solar Energy

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Students use data to find the best renewable energy potential.  In this solar energy lesson students import data into Excel and explain how solar energy is beneficial. 
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Energy Sources

For Teachers 4th - 6th
Students explore a variety of sources and types of energy. The difference between energy for a person and energy for an automobile are examined. Efficiency and care for the environment are included in this experience.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Biogeochemical Cycles

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Learners demonstrate comprehension of the energy sources of various cycles by completing mini stories. They demonstrate analysis of words by defining individual word parts and combining them to form definitions. Students demonstrate...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Solar Energy Connection

For Teachers 8th - 12th
Students conduct solar experiments. They calculate the solar gain and operate a solar cell devise used to generate electricity. Students compare and contrast solar energy gain with students in India. They analyze the difference...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Zoo Poo

For Teachers 10th - 12th
Students use Internet research to determine the amount of carbon dioxide produced per unit energy for biomass and coal. In this alternative energy lesson, students research to find out how much energy and carbon dioxide several coal and...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Wind Power

For Teachers 9th - 12th
What a wonderful way to explore wind power! Through this lesson, learners get a background in the history of wind power, create their own wind turbine, and the test their designs. This is a terrific way to tie scientific principles to...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Chocolate Chip Cookie Mining

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
To understand the impact coal mining has on the environment, pupils will extract chocolate chips from a cookie. Imagine the cookie is the environment and the chips are the coal. Instruct them to mine as many chips as they can, then have...
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Lesson Plan
Foundation for Water & Energy Education

How Can Work Be Done with Water Power? Activity C

For Teachers 6th - 8th Standards
Third in a set of lessons regarding reservoirs, dams, and hydropower, this involves a two-day hydropower plant simulation. Collaborative groups build, maintain, and finance the plant. The transparency of the reservoir setup can be...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Discovering The Power Of Sunlight

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Learners participate in a lesson that looks at the potential for energy from sunlight. Students conduct research from a variety of resources and construct an object that is used to measure the energy of sunlight and calculate the amounts...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Solar Energy Experiment

For Teachers 5th - 6th
Students observe solar energy at work. For this science lesson, students watch two bottles, painted black and white, sit in the heat with balloons on the mouth of the bottles. They observe and discuss why the balloon of the black bottle...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Energy All Around: Energy in Our Lives

For Teachers 1st - 2nd
Learners identify the different sources of energy. In this energy lesson plan, students list different machines and identify the type of energy used to operate them. They create a diagram of a wind turbine and label its parts.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

My Angle on Cooling: Effects of Distance and Inclination

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Learners discuss what heat is and how it travels. They discover that one way to cool an object in the presence of a heat source is to increase the distance from it or change the angle at which it is faced.
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Worksheet
Curated OER

Mission 7: Saving Energy

For Students 5th - 6th
In these saving energy worksheets, students learn about energy and how to conserve it. Students complete a 22 page packet for the activity.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Star Power! Discovering the Power of Sunlight

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students estimate the energy output of the sun. They estimate how much power sunlight the sunlight provides to the earth. They build a simple device to measure the amount of solar radiation the earth receives from the sun.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

My Car Has Potential

For Teachers 7th
Seventh graders investigate how changes in the mass or height of a ramp can affect the change in potential energy. They discuss the concepts of work and energy, then using the four question strategy, they design an experiment that...
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Lab Resource
Colorado State University

What's the Difference Between Blue Light and Red Light?

For Teachers 6th - 12th Standards
Finally, an electromagnetic spectrum lab that will get glowing reviews from your class! Explore the nature of light using red and blue LED sources and fantastic phosphorescent paper. Young scientists compare the effects of blue light...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Applied Science - Technology (3A) Post Lab

For Teachers 3rd
Third graders discuss how energy is created. In this energy lesson, 3rd graders look at how a city receives energy and how it is made. They create their own generator using a pin wheel and pipe cleaners. 
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Lesson Plan
Space Awareness

The Engine of Life

For Teachers 5th - 11th Standards
There is a specific zone, or distance from a star, that a planet must be in order to have water in a liquid form. The activity demonstrates how flux density depends on its distance from the source. A photovoltaic cell gets power to drive...