Curated OER
Pendulum Power
Eighth graders study the Law of Conservation of Energy and the Second Law of Thermodynamics. they create a pendulum out of either a rope with a bowling ball or barbell tied to one end.
Curated OER
Energy Conservation Games
Middle schoolers become acquainted with the first law of thermodynamics, which concerns the conservation of energy as it is transformed from one form to another. They identify forms of energy, and devices or processes that transform...
Texas State Energy Conservation Office
Cost-Effective Buying
Middle school energy experts read about the relationship between energy use and cost-efficiency. Then they work through a couple of scenarios to determine which approach is more cost-effective.
Curated OER
TO CONSERVE OR NOT TO CONSERVE
Students explore how energy is wasted at home and at work and develop a program to save energy in a specific area.
Kenan Fellows
How Much Heat Can a Phase Change Produce?
Scholars learn about heat release in phase changes. They perform calculations as they compare and contrast a science fiction passage and a home heating application.
Teach Engineering
Energy in Our Lives Carousel
Don't waste any more energy trying to find a great resource on energy. The third installment of a 25-part Energy Systems and Solutions unit focuses on energy use in pupils' lives. They consider how their daily routines consume energy and...
Curated OER
A Home Energy Audit
Students investigate ways to save energy. In this environmental instructional activity, students play the role of a building inspector and identify "culprits" that waste energy. Students use a checklist to identify specific practices...
Curated OER
Energy At Play
If you can find Tinker Toys™, then this may be a fun assignment for your physical science class. Using the construction set and a few other toys, they examine the forces involved when it they are being played with. For each, they...
Curated OER
Energy Adventure Scavenger Hunt
Students complete a scavenger hunt. In this energy lesson, students use various Internet websites to explore forms of energy, non-renewable sources, renewable sources, electricity, uses of energy and energy efficiency.
Curated OER
The Chemistry of Ice Cream
In this chemistry of ice cream worksheet, students investigate colligative properties and how they affect freezing points while making ice cream. Students answer short answer questions to determine if freezing is an endothermic or...
Curated OER
Melting the Ice: Energy Transfer
Students study thermal energy and energy transfer to sea ice processes. In this energy transfer lesson, students make their own ice cream and discuss energy transfer and thermal energy. Students view a radiation overhead and its role in...
Curated OER
The BEAM Project: Building Efficient Architectural Models
Technology or engineering teams are given a task to design, construct, and test the efficiency of a structure that will foster an even temperature throughout an entire sunny day. Intended as a long-term project, pupils research, plan,...
Curated OER
Energy Conversion
Students describe how energy can be transformed from one form to another. In this physics lesson, students calculate kinetic and potential energy using mathematical equations. They give real life applications of this lesson.
Carnegie Mellon University
How Power Plants Work 1
First of three lessons, this is a great start to a unit on energy. As you demonstrate, learners discover different types of energy and how it is converted from one form to another. They then focus in on the generation of electricity by...
Teach Engineering
Light vs. Heat Bulbs
Careful, that light bulb is hot! Compare heat and light energy using a simple light bulb. The exercise addresses energy conservation and presents actual calculations to determine the most cost-effective light bulb.
US Department of Energy
Draft-O-Meter
Help your class improve the energy efficiency of their homes with the draft-o-meter. Simply tape a sheet of plastic wrap to a pencil and use it to observe any air leaking through windows, doorways, and other locations around the house....
Teach Engineering
Solar Power
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...
Curated OER
Energy Conservation
Students discuss the different uses of energy. They examine the consumption percentages to do household tasks. They discover ways to reduce their energy consumption.
California Academy of Science
Energy: A Day in My Life
If only we could harness the energy of fifth graders, our energy problems would be over! The class discusses where different forms of energy come from and how we use them. They complete a chart of the activities that they do daily...
Curated OER
The Energy Debate - Energy of Peanut
Learners articulate the difference between the terms heat and temperature. They calculate the amount of energy associated with a given temperature rise and design an experiment to measure the energy of a fuel.
Curated OER
Solar Power
Fifth graders create their own solar panel. They use this experiment to see how the sun can be used as a form of energy.
Curated OER
How Much Energy is Stored in Wood?
In this energy activity, learners create calorimeters out of soda cans and use them to calculate the amount of energy stored in different types of wood.
American Chemical Society
Exothermic, Endothermic, and Chemical Change
Scientists can't observe bonds breaking or forming, so how do they distinguish between exothermic and endothermic reactions? Young scholars complete two experiments to do just that. They monitor temperature change and calculate the...
Curated OER
Forms of Energy
Pupils, working in expert groups, study a form of energy. They plan a slide show presentation using pictures, clip art, and student taken digital pictures that show the energy type they have become experts in. They use a planning sheet...