Science Education Resource Center at Carleton College
Serc: Alternative Energy Debate
With a learning team, students choose an alternative energy source such as solar, wind, biofuel, geothermal or other form and research the pros and cons of that energy type. The team then splits into debate teams and draws straws to...
PBS
Pbs Online News Hour Extra: u.s. Economy's Troubles Hurt Alternative Energy Plans
Because of recession and the costs of gas on the decline, many worry that the search for new forms of energy will be put on hold. Read and discuss as a class these concerns. October 24, 2008
State Energy Conservation Office-Texas
State Energy Conservation Office: Electricity From the Sun [Pdf]
Discusses forms of renewable energy that rely on the sun. For example, wind is created when solar energy heats the air, and biomass is solar energy that has been stored in plants.
EL Education
El Education: Guide to Energy Sources
This guide was created by 3rd and 4th grade students at the Santa Fe School for the Arts and Sciences, in Santa Fe, New Mexico, as part of a learning expedition on energy sources and alternative energy. Students studied all forms of...
Council for Economic Education
Econ Ed Link: Be an Energy Saver
This lesson focuses on the scarce and non-renewable nature of fossil fuels in order to stimulate student thinking about energy conservation. It emphasizes the fact that saving energy can be good for the wallet as well as the earth's...
TeachEngineering
Teach Engineering: Energy Conservation
Students are introduced to the idea that energy use impacts the environment and our wallets. They discuss different types of renewable and nonrenewable energy sources, as well as the impacts of energy consumption. Through a series of...
US Energy Information Administration
U.s. Eia Energy Kids: Energy Explained
A comprehensive source of information about energy in all its forms. Each type of energy is explained, along with information about its environmental impact, supported with graphs, charts, and other data. There is a twenty-question quiz...
Other
National Renewable Energy Laboratory: Learning About Renewable Energy
Extensive information about the different forms of renewable energy, energy efficiencies that can be achieved, energy research, and the many applications for renewable energy production.
TeachEngineering
Teach Engineering: Form vs. Function
Students take a closer look at cars and learn about some characteristics that affect their energy efficiency, including rolling resistance and the aerodynamics of shape and size. They come to see how vehicles are one example of a product...
TeachEngineering
Teach Engineering: Greenewables
Students form expert engineering teams working for the (fictional) alternative energy consulting firm, Greenewables, Inc. Each team specializes in a form of renewable energy used to generate electrical power: passive solar, solar...
TeachEngineering
Teach Engineering: The Grid
The class forms a "Presidential Task Force" for a week, empowered by the president to find answers and make recommendations concerning the future of the national power grid. Task force members conduct daily debriefings with their...
Other
Energy Resources: Hydro Electric Power
Alternative forms of energy site showcases Hydro-electric power. Discover how it works, it's advantages and disadvantages as well as whether or not it's considered to be a renewable resource.
Other
Chewonki Foundation: Pathways to a Sustainable Future: Renewable Energy
Information on different forms of renewable energy with links for student projects, resources for teachers, and links to related resources.
TeachEngineering
Teach Engineering: Environmental Challenges in China
Students learn about the wonderful and fascinating country of China, and its environmental challenges that require engineering solutions, many in the form of increased energy efficiency, the incorporation of renewable energy, and new...
Climate Literacy
Clean: Solar Water Heater
Student teams design and build solar water heaters to capture energy in the form of solar radiation and convert it to thermal energy. Once the model devices are constructed, students perform efficiency calculations and compare designs.
Khan Academy
Khan Academy: Claim Testers: Episode 4 Fueling the Future
The claim tester gang comes face-to-face with Orx-30. This comic focuses around the topic of sustainable forms of energy.
Other
Energy Resources: Fossil Fuels
Alternative forms of energy site showcases fossil fuels. Discover how it works, its' advantages and disadvantages as well as whether or not it's a renewable resource.
Council for Economic Education
Econ Ed Link: Blowing in the Wind
Wind energy is becoming a viable alternative to more traditional forms of energy generation. In this lesson plan, students will determine the feasibility of wind generation in different areas of the United States. Finally, students will...
TeachEngineering
Teach Engineering: Antimatter Matters
Antimatter, the charge reversed equivalent of matter, has captured the imaginations of science fiction fans for years as a perfectly efficient form of energy. While normal matter consists of atoms with negatively charged electrons...