How much solar energy is available at my location? An engaging resource provides a presentation along with script to give the class background information on determining solar radiation. Pupils then work through a worksheet to estimate the solar energy for their location and time. Once finished, they compare the amount of available solar energy to other locations and times.

Concepts

solar energy, energy, renewable energy sources, solar radiation, technology resources

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Instructional Ideas

• Research the size of local solar collectors and their heat energy
• Find directions for a solar oven, calculate the heat energy for it, and determine cooking times before using it

Classroom Considerations

• Determine the latitude of your town so that you can figure out the tilt angle of a solar module
• Solar energy maps should be printed in color
• Published with Boulder, Colorado in mind, but you could make it relevant to your area with some minor adjustments

Pros

• Comes with teacher script for the presentation
• Worksheet provides step-by-step calculation instructions

Cons

• None