Design a 50 Year Energy Plan

50 Year Energy Plan - Unit Plan

Grades:
9-12
Unit:
50 Year Energy Plan
Description:

Throughout this creative, hands-on Unit, students are challenged to scale up every Disciplinary Core Idea and Science & Engineering Practice they’ve learned - from simple electricity generation, to building their own stereo speakers and DIY electric...

Energy Content:
Batteries & Storage,
Circuitry,
Electrical Energy,
Electrical Grid (Transmission & Distribution),
Electricity and Magnetism,
Electricity Generation,
Electronics,
Electrons,
Light (Visible),
Solar Photovoltaic,
Sources of Energy,
Wind Energy
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More Details Less Details
Learning Goal(s):
Explore causes and effects of climate change as related to energy production. Develop a working understanding of varying stakeholder perspectives on the causes and effects of climate change. Through hands-on exploration, build a working speaker that can connect to a cellphone. Use DIY speakers as a model to observe the process of producing electrical currents with a simple generator. Design, build and refine a wind turbine to efficiently convert mechanical energy into electrical energy. Design, build and refine a system that is the most effective at converting the sunlight into electrical energy. Students develop models to study the relationship between the Earth’s atmospheric composition and the Earth’s surface temperatures using simple diagrams. Students reflect on the impact of energy sources and power production on the environment. Students utilize their knowledge of how energy generation processes impacts the environment to inform how and why they develop a 50-year Energy Plan for their local community. 
Pedagogy & Practice:
Social-Emotional Learning,
Project-Based Learning,
Place-Based Learning,
Phenomena-Driven Instruction,
Hands-on Materials,
Group Work/Collaboration,
Engineering Design
NGSS Science and Engineering Practices:
1: Asking Questions and Defining Problems,
2: Developing and Using Models,
3: Planning and Carrying Out Investigations,
4: Analyzing and Interpreting Data,
5: Using Mathematics and Computational Thinking,
6: Constructing Explanations and Designing Solutions,
7: Engaging in Argument from Evidence
Author:
Bradford Hill
Relevant NGSS PE:
HS-ESS2-4,
HS-ESS3-1,
HS-ESS3-2,
HS-ETS1-1,
HS-ETS1-3,
HS-ETS1-4,
HS-PS2-5,
HS-PS3-3,
HS-PS3-5,
HS-PS4-3
Other Subjects Covered:
Computer Science,
ELA: Speaking & Listening,
ELA: Writing,
Math: Graphing & Representation,
Math: Measurement,
Social Sciences: Analysis,
Social Sciences: Civics,
Social Sciences: Geography,
Social Sciences: Multicultural Studies
Estimated Activity Length:
0 sec
Design a 50 Year Energy Plan

Introducing Power Production and Impacts of Climate Change

Grades:
9-12
Unit:
50 Year Energy Plan
Lesson Number:
1
Description:

In the first part of this activity, students participate in a role play activity – understanding the needs of different people living and working around the world. Each character express their unique perspective on climate change and impacts to their...

Energy Content:
Sources of Energy
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More Details Less Details
Learning Goal(s):
1. Explore the causes and effects of climate change as related to energy production.2. Develop a working understanding of varying stakeholder perspectives on the causes and effects of climate change. 
Pedagogy & Practice:
Engineering Design,
Project-Based Learning,
Research-Secondary,
Social-Emotional Learning
NGSS Science and Engineering Practices:
2: Developing and Using Models,
8: Obtaining, Evaluating, and Communicating Information
Author:
Bradford Hill
Relevant NGSS PE:
HS-ESS3-1
Other Subjects Covered:
Social Sciences: Civics,
Social Sciences: Geography,
Social Sciences: Multicultural Studies
Estimated Activity Length:
3 hours
Design a 50 Year Energy Plan

Diving into the Physics of Motors and Generators

Grades:
9-12
Unit:
50 Year Energy Plan
Lesson Number:
2
Description:

Using energy analysis and some tinkering students hand wind speakers to play music from a phone. This acts as a phenomenon to engage students in the exploration of electromagnetism. At this point, they have created a motor, which utilizes electric current...

Energy Content:
Circuitry,
Electrical Energy,
Electricity Generation,
Electronics,
Electrons
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More Details Less Details
Learning Goal(s):
1. Through hands-on exploration, create a working speaker for a cellphone. 2. Use the creation of a speaker to observe as a model for the process of generating electrical current in a simple generator/motor. 
Pedagogy & Practice:
Engineering Design,
Group Work/Collaboration,
Hands-on Materials,
Phenomena-Driven Instruction,
Research-Secondary
NGSS Science and Engineering Practices:
1: Asking Questions and Defining Problems,
7: Engaging in Argument from Evidence,
8: Obtaining, Evaluating, and Communicating Information
Author:
Bradford Hill
Relevant NGSS PE:
HS-PS2-5,
HS-PS3-3
Estimated Activity Length:
5 hours
Design a 50 Year Energy Plan

Scaling up to Power Production: Let’s Engineer a Wind Turbine

Grades:
9-12
Unit:
50 Year Energy Plan
Lesson Number:
3
Description:

After working through Lessons 1 and 2 of this Unit, students are now familiar with the physics of how generators work. The next step in Lesson 3 is to investigate how existing power generation systems operate and supply electricity to entire geographic...

Energy Content:
Batteries & Storage,
Circuitry,
Electrical Energy,
Electrical Grid (Transmission & Distribution),
Wind Energy
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More Details Less Details
Learning Goal(s):
1. Design, build, and refine a wind turbine in order to effectively and efficiently convert motion into mechanical energy and then into electrical energy 
Pedagogy & Practice:
Engineering Design,
Group Work/Collaboration
NGSS Science and Engineering Practices:
1: Asking Questions and Defining Problems,
3: Planning and Carrying Out Investigations,
4: Analyzing and Interpreting Data,
5: Using Mathematics and Computational Thinking,
6: Constructing Explanations and Designing Solutions
Author:
Bradford Hill
Relevant NGSS PE:
HS-PS3-3
Other Subjects Covered:
ELA: Speaking & Listening,
Math: Graphing & Representation
Estimated Activity Length:
5 hours
Design a 50 Year Energy Plan

Scaling up to Power Production Let’s use Data to Optimize the Performance of a Solar Cell Array

Grades:
9-12
Unit:
50 Year Energy Plan
Lesson Number:
4
Description:

Somewhat similar to the first part of the wind turbine project from Lesson 3, students are tasked with optimizing the performance of a photovoltaic system. This objective both allows students to apply the engineering-design process they absorbed in...

Energy Content:
Circuitry,
Electrical Energy,
Electrical Grid (Transmission & Distribution),
Solar Photovoltaic,
Sources of Energy
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More Details Less Details
Learning Goal(s):
1. Design, build, and refine a system that most effectively converts energy from the sun into electrical energy. 
Pedagogy & Practice:
Engineering Design,
Group Work/Collaboration,
Hands-on Materials,
Phenomena-Driven Instruction
NGSS Science and Engineering Practices:
1: Asking Questions and Defining Problems,
3: Planning and Carrying Out Investigations,
4: Analyzing and Interpreting Data,
5: Using Mathematics and Computational Thinking,
6: Constructing Explanations and Designing Solutions,
7: Engaging in Argument from Evidence,
8: Obtaining, Evaluating, and Communicating Information
Author:
Bradford Hill
Relevant NGSS PE:
HS-PS3-3
Other Subjects Covered:
ELA: Speaking & Listening,
Math: Graphing & Representation,
Math: Measurement
Estimated Activity Length:
0 sec
Design a 50 Year Energy Plan

How Do We Evaluate Energy Sources?

Grades:
9-12
Unit:
50 Year Energy Plan
Lesson Number:
5
Description:

Building on student’s understanding of energy production methods developed over previous lessons, Lesson 5 asks the class to identify and measure trade-offs between environmental impacts – human needs – and practical costs of different power generation...

Energy Content:
Electrical Grid (Transmission & Distribution),
Sources of Energy
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More Details Less Details
Learning Goal(s):
1. Students will develop models of the interaction between atmospheric composition and surface temperature using simple diagrams.2. Students will reflect on the impact of energy sources and power production on the environment. 
Pedagogy & Practice:
Group Work/Collaboration,
Project-Based Learning
NGSS Science and Engineering Practices:
1: Asking Questions and Defining Problems,
2: Developing and Using Models
Author:
Bradford Hill
Relevant NGSS PE:
HS-ESS1-4,
HS-ESS3-2,
HS-ETS1-1,
HS-ETS1-3
Other Subjects Covered:
Social Sciences: Geography
Estimated Activity Length:
0 sec
Design a 50 Year Energy Plan

What is Our Plan?

Grades:
9-12
Unit:
50 Year Energy Plan
Lesson Number:
6
Description:

With all the pieces in place, this Unit’s final lesson asks students to code a spreadsheet that calculates and mathematically predicts the environmental impacts of different energy sources and strategies over a 50 year timespan. Divided into five...

Energy Content:
Batteries & Storage,
Biomass Energy,
Electrical Grid (Transmission & Distribution),
Hydropower,
Solar Photovoltaic,
Sources of Energy,
Wind Energy
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-
More Details Less Details
Learning Goal(s):
1. Students utilize their knowledge of energy’s impact on global systems as well as the process of energy generation in order to inform their development of a 50-year Energy Plan divided into decades. 
Pedagogy & Practice:
Engineering Design,
Group Work/Collaboration,
Place-Based Learning,
Project-Based Learning
NGSS Science and Engineering Practices:
5: Using Mathematics and Computational Thinking,
6: Constructing Explanations and Designing Solutions,
7: Engaging in Argument from Evidence
Author:
Bradford Hill
Relevant NGSS PE:
HS-ESS3-2,
HS-ETS1-1,
HS-ETS1-3,
HS-ETS1-4
Other Subjects Covered:
ELA: Writing,
Math: Graphing & Representation,
Social Sciences: Analysis,
Social Sciences: Geography
Estimated Activity Length:
5 hours