Activity
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: Daylighting Design

For Teachers 9th - 10th
Students explore the many different ways that engineers provide natural lighting to interior spaces. They analyze various methods of daylighting by constructing model houses from foam core board and simulating the sun with a desk lamp....
Lesson Plan
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: Passive Solar Design

For Teachers 9th - 10th
Students are introduced to passive solar design for buildings--an approach that uses the sun's energy and the surrounding climate to provide natural heating and cooling. They learn about some of the disadvantage of conventional heating...
Activity
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: Zero Energy Housing

For Teachers 9th - 10th
Students investigate passive solar building design with a focus solely on heating. They learn how insulation, window placement, thermal mass, surface colors, and site orientation play important roles in passive solar heating. They use...
Unit Plan
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: Energy Efficient Housing

For Teachers 9th - 10th
We all know that it takes energy to provide us with the basics of shelter: heating, cooling, lighting, electricity, sanitation and cooking. To create energy-efficient housing that is practical for people to use every day requires...
Lesson Plan
Climate Literacy

Clean: Zero Energy Housing

For Teachers 9th - 10th
Students investigate passive solar building design with a focus solely on heating. Then they design and build their own model houses, and test them for thermal gains and losses during a simulated day and night.
Lesson Plan
TryEngineering

Try Engineering: Solar Structures

For Teachers 9th - 10th
During this lesson, students will construct a passive solar house from everyday items then explore how the sun's energy is used to heat and cool it.
Lesson Plan
Climate Literacy

Clean: Solar House

For Teachers 9th - 10th
Students in teams of architects are challenged to build a solar house, containing both active and passive solar components. They design the house, build a model, and test it to determine its ability to use solar energy efficiently.
Unit Plan
PBS

Pbs: Real World Ratio and Rate Reasoning: How to Power the Skate Park

For Students 6th - 8th
The CyberSquad works with area to figure out how to power a skate park using solar panels in this interactive from WNET. In the accompanying classroom activity, students view and analyze a series of video clips from Cyberchase and...