Handout
State Energy Conservation Office-Texas

State Energy Conservation Office: Solar and Electric Cars [Pdf]

For Students 4th - 6th
Learn the differences between cars powered by different fuels. Looks at solar, electric, hybrid and gasoline-powered cars.
Activity
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: Pointing at Maximum Power for Pv

For Teachers 9th - 10th
Student teams measure voltage and current in order to determine the power output of a photovoltaic (PV) panel. They vary the resistance in a simple circuit connected to the panel to demonstrate the effects on voltage, current, and power...
Lesson Plan
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: Maximum Power Point

For Teachers 9th - 10th
Students learn how to find the maximum power point (MPP) of a photovoltaic (PV) panel in order to optimize its efficiency at creating solar power. They also learn about real-world applications and technologies that use this technique, as...
Lesson Plan
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: Concentrated Solar Power

For Teachers 9th - 10th
Young scholars learn how the total solar irradiance hitting a photovoltaic (PV) panel can be increased through the use of a concentrating device, such as a reflector or lens. This is the final lesson plan in the Photovoltaic Efficiency...
Activity
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: Renewable Energy Living Lab: Power Your School

For Teachers 5th - 8th
Students use real-world data to calculate the potential for solar and wind energy generation at their school location. After examining maps and analyzing data from the online Renewable Energy Living Lab, they write recommendations as to...
Activity
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: Organic Solar Energy and Berries

For Teachers 9th - 10th
Students learn about how a device made with dye from a plant, specifically cherries, blackberries, raspberries and/or black currents, can be used to convert light energy into electrical energy. They do this by building their own organic...
Unit Plan
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: Exploring Solar Power

For Teachers 6th - 8th
This unit provides students the opportunity to explore methods engineers have devised for harnessing sunlight to generate power. Students will initially explore heat transfer and heat storage through the construction, testing, and...
Handout
State Energy Conservation Office-Texas

State Energy Conservation Office: Electricity From the Sun [Pdf]

For Students 4th - 6th
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.
Activity
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: Design a Solar City

For Teachers 3rd - 8th
Students design and build a model city powered by the sun! They learn about the benefits of solar power, and how architectural and building engineers integrate photovoltaic panels into the design of buildings.
Unit Plan
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: Photovoltaic Efficiency

For Teachers 9th - 10th
Through a series of four lessons, students are introduced to many factors that affect the power output of photovoltaic (PV) solar panels. Factors such as the angle of the sun, temperature of the panels, specific circuit characteristics,...
Lesson Plan
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: Off the Grid

For Teachers 9th - 10th
Learners learn and discuss the advantages and disadvantages of renewable and non-renewable energy sources. They also learn about our nation's electric power grid and what it means for a residential home to be "off the grid."
Website
NOAA

Noaa: National Weather Service: The Sun and Its Effect on the Earth [Pdf]

For Students 9th - 10th
The Space Environment Center (SEC) put together a slide show for use by teachers on Space weather. Begin with discussing solar emission and the sun itself. Then end with a summary of climatic effects of space weather, and a note on space...
Lesson Plan
Climate Literacy

Clean: State Electricity on Google Earth: How Many Solar Panels Would It Take?

For Teachers 9th - 10th
This activity addresses the Energy Awareness Principle by having students calculate electricity use by state, and also determine how much land would be required to replace all sources of electricity with solar panels considering costs...
Website
Other

First Energy: The Electric Avenue: Energy Fun Factory

For Students 3rd - 8th
Here, students can learn all about energy sources and electricity. Activities include games and calculating energy costs in their homes.
Website
University of Wisconsin

The Why Files: Power Plants

For Students 9th - 10th
Photovoltaic technology is compared and contrasted to the natural phenomenon of photosynthesis. The means by which photocells harness solar energy is described and explained.
Activity
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: Renewable Energy Living Lab

For Teachers 9th - 10th
Students become familiar with the online Renewable Energy Living Lab interface and access its real-world solar energy data to evaluate the potential for solar generation in various U.S. locations. They become familiar with where the most...
Activity
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: Ice, Ice, Pv!

For Teachers 9th - 10th
Students examine how the power output of a photovoltaic (PV) solar panel is affected by temperature changes. Using a 100-watt lamp and a small PV panel connected to a digital multimeter, teams vary the temperature of the panel and record...
Activity
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: Renewable Energy Living Lab: The Bright Idea

For Teachers 9th - 10th
Students use real-world data to evaluate the feasibility of solar energy and other renewable energy sources in different U.S. locations. Working in small groups, students act as engineers evaluating the suitability of installing solar...
Activity
American Geosciences Institute

American Geosciences Institute: Energy

For Students 6th - 8th
Seven hands-on lessons module where students learn about energy. These inquiry-based explorations investigate where energy resources come from and how they are converted into electricity, how fossil fuels form, the importance of...
Activity
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: Renewable Energy Living Lab: Energy Experts

For Teachers 5th - 8th
Students use real-world data to evaluate various renewable energy sources and the feasibility of implementing these sources. Working in small groups, students use data from the Renewable Energy Living Lab to describe and understand the...
Activity
Read Works

Read Works: Electricity & Energy Energy

For Teachers 4th
[Free Registration/Login Required] An informational text about energy. A question sheet is available to help students build skills in reading comprehension.
Unit Plan
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: Energy

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Through nine lessons, students are introduced to a range of energy types--electrical, light, sound and thermal-as well as the renewable energy sources of wind, hydro (water) and solar power. Subjects range from understanding that the...
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...
Handout
Kidport

Kidport Reference Library: Energy

For Students 3rd - 5th
A simple introduction to energy, offering information on hydro-electric energy, fossil fuels, nuclear power, solar energy, and wind energy.