Phenomena: Energy Transfer via Electromagnetic Induction
Students will learn how electromagnetic induction works and how it is used to capture the power of waves.
Next Generation Science Standards
Next Generation Science Standards (Table Standards) * Note there is a spacer of 15 px after this table.
| NGSS Performance Expectations | How is this assessed? |
| MS-ESS3-3. Apply scientific principles to design a method for monitoring and minimizing a human impact on the environment. | Students will learn about tidal wave attenuators and discuss potential advantages and disadvantages of these renewable devices. This knowledge will be used to frame the importance of their design project and will be incorporated into their final presentations. |
| MS-ETS1-1. Define the criteria and constraints of a design problem with sufficient precision to ensure a successful solution taking into account relevant scientific principles and potential impacts on people and the natural environment that may limit possible solutions. | With each of their engineering challenges, students will be required to identify the constraints and criteria for success based on the objectives given to them as well as the materials supplied before they even begin their project. The teacher will explicitly ask for this information in each of these scenarios. Students will also be required to discuss how wave attenuators can affect the environment as well as people. |
| MS-ETS1-4. Develop a model to generate data for iterative testing and modification of a proposed object, tool or process such that an optimal design can be achieved. | While students are completing the initial engineering challenges focusing on magnetism, they will face small challenges to overcome with improving their design simply by making scientific principles more visible in the function of their devices. However, in their later final project, students will be required to identify variables that impacted the success of their design when modified and describe optimal changes made in regards to this variable. They must relate this to the success of their design and its power output. |
| MS-PS2-5. Conduct an investigation and evaluate the experimental design to provide evidence that fields exist between objects exerting forces on each other even though the objects are not in contact. | L1: Students will construct models to demonstrate that electricity (a battery circuit) can exert a force on a compass magnet, that electricity can create a magnet that exerts a force on ferromagnetic materials such as paperclips, and that a moving magnet at a (far) distance can influence a compass magnet through the use of coils of wires (electromagnetic induction). |
| MS-PS3-5. Construct, use, and present arguments to support the claim that when the kinetic energy of an object changes, energy is transferred to or from the object. | Students will construct models to show the transfer of energy through magnets and electromagnetic induction. |
Lesson 1: Introduction to Electromagnetism
Through a series of goal-oriented activities and research, students will build physical models that demonstrate the interactions between magnetism and magnetic fields as well as interactions between magnetism and electric fields. Students will be challenged to engineer devices that: change a magnetic field using electricity, creating a magnet using electricity, and inducing a changing magnetic field using a magnet. This lesson is suitable as an introduction to electromagnetism for various purposes especially for electricity generation (wave and tidal power, hydropower, wind power, and fossil fuel electricity generation).
Lesson 2: Building a Tidal Wave Attenuator
This lesson is designed to build upon investigations of electromagnetic energy by applying these phenomena to transfer the kinetic energy moving in waves to electricity by building a wave attenuator.
Lesson 3: Testing a Tidal Wave Attenuator
Students will test the efficiency of the tidal wave attenuator models that they previously built. They will determine variables on their models they can manipulate, such as wire gauge and magnet strength, and measure the effects of manipulating this variable on the success of their design. They will report their findings in a presentation to the class.
Featured Image Description
Diagram of a Wave Attenuator Model “Sea Snake”. Sitting over a line representing waves are two rectangles labeled “1 1/8″ Foam” Between these rectangles ins a line labeled “Duct Tape Joint” On each foam rectangle is an L Bracket with the bracket pointed up. On the left side Nuts support a Bolt with a Rare Earth Magnet that is inside an Acrylic Tube that is parallel to the foam. The Acrylic Tube is wrapped in Magnetic Wire. Connected to the Wire and sitting in the upper right of the diagram is a Volt Meter diagram.