Experimenting with Solar Heaters

As part of a STEM renewable energy series, middle schoolers design a standard solar heater. First, they create a simple solar heater to measure the temperature change in a vial of water, then calculate the heat energy transferred to the vial of water. Second, pupils are provided various building supplies and design new solar heaters that are more effective than the simple models they used in the previous lesson. Finally, designers analyze data and results from part two and identify which variables are most effective. They are then challenged to beat the standard solar heater created in the first lesson.