Activities for 5.7C
Following are 7 activities for 5.7C. Some of these are basic, others are more difficult. Choose the ones that best fit the needs of your students.
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Renewable vs Nonrenewable—sorting activity. Divide the resource cards into either renewable or nonrenewable.
Alternative Energy Sort—sorting activity. Sort the types of renewable resources by matching the description with the picture.
Alternative Energy Arrays—(Fig 19). There are four arrays showing pictures and descriptions of alternative energy sources. There are also
questions that go with the arrays. Students can work on this in partners, in a station, or as a class.
Geothermal and Hydropower Sequencing Cards. Sequence the order of how Hydroelectricity is created. There is also a sort for
geothermal energy.
Alternative Energy Sorting Chart. Use the chart and sort the cards that represent the different characteristics of the 5 types of alternative
renewable energy sources.
Renewable and Nonrenewable Energy Questions—answer the multiple choice questions about renewable and nonrenewable resources
Mojo Island—alternative energy game. In this game, students play the role of scientists that have been asked to identify the most
appropriate energy options for village communities on an island. This game came from Practical Action.
Also, don’t forget resources we all have available to us:
CINCH science—the lesson on “Alternative Energy Sources”. This lesson has great information and great diagams of the different alternative
energy sources and power plants.
Quizlet—online flashcards. www.quizlet.com
Search for “sets” already made. “Alternative Energy 5.7C” is a set that has 10 questions
about the different sources. Students can study, spell, match, or test themselves. They do not need to make an account to use.
Kahoot—online quiz game www.getkahoot.com Online quiz game for a whole class. Very similar to the “clicker” system. Teacher creates an
account and sets up a game. Students use computers or smart devices to play the game (they don’t make an account, just type in the game
code) Search for “Energy Sources: renewable vs nonrewable”. There are also other games on resources you might find and like through the
public search.
I have all of the master copies(so you can print color versions) of the activities I found and created on my wiki.
http://grahamsgalaxy.wikispaces.com/Alternative+Energy+Sources
I also have a lot of other resources on my team wiki:
sciencewilmeth5.wikispaces.com
If you need anything else or have any questions, just ask!
Christine Graham
cgraham@mckinneyisd.net
Array Questions for Alternative Energy
Sources
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How does this energy source get transferred into electricity?
Why should we use this energy?
Where does this energy come from?
Is this energy source found everywhere?
How do we use this energy source?
How is energy converted in the process of making electricity with
this energy source? (How does it involve mechanical energy?)
Can you describe the tools we use to access this energy source?
Is this energy source easy to access?
What percent of energy production in the US is made by this energy
source?
Does this energy create more pollution?
Do we need to use this energy source more or less? Why?
Hydropower
Hydropower depends on rivers and the water cycle.
Moving water converts into mechanical energy
Swiftly flowing water carries a lot of energy. Water
flows through a pipe and turns blades on a turbine that
spins a generator that converts this mechanical energy
into electrical energy. Hydroelectric power on rivers
accounts for 7% of all energy production in US and 20%
of electricity production in the world.
Hydropower dams can negatively affect the environment by:
hindering migration, stopping sediment flow, altering human
activities and are very expensive to build.
http://www.eia.gov/kids/energy.cfm?page=hydropower_home
http://www.romania-insider.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/hydro-power-plant.jpg
There are only six tidal energy
plants in the world. Tidal power
is easy to predict, but expensive
to harnass.
Geothermal Energy is gathered as water is pumped into the
rocks below. The hot rocks heat the water. The water is then
brought back up to the surface as steam. The hot, moving
steam turns a special turbine. This turbine spins a generator.
The generator converts this mechanical energy into an electrical
charge. The electricity moves through a transformer into wires
at the power station. The power station sends it into homes
and businesses.
http://www.buzzle.com/images/diagrams/geothermal-power-plant.jpg
http://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.cfm?id=3970
Geothermal =
geo (Earth) +
thermal (heat)
Geothermal
energy is heat
from deep
inside the
rocky outer
layer of Earth
http://conserve-energy-future.com/Images/Geothermal_Energy.jpg
http://www.technologystudent.com/images5/geo2.gif
26 countries have geothermal power plants. California
produces 80% of the geothermal energy for the U.S.
Geothermal Energy comes from: hot springs, geysers,
and volcanoes. It is usually found near plate boundaries.
The area under the surface needs to be 300 to 700
degrees to be hot enough for a power plant. These
geothermal plants are expensive to build but inexpensive
and environmentally friendly to maintain.
WIND POWER
What causes wind?
Darrieus vertical-axis
wind turbine in
Martigny, Switzerland
http://www.eia.gov/kids/energy.cfm?page=wi
nd_home-basics
http://www.eia.gov/kids/energy.cfm?page=wind_homebasics
http://blog.industrialinterface.com/w
pcontent/uploads/2009/11how_wind_t
urbine_works-562x334.jpg
Wind spins the turbine blades. The blades mechanically turn the shaft
and gearbox which spin a generator that creates an electric spark.
There are two main kinds of
wind turbines. Horizontal axis
turbines look like windmills.
Vertical-axis turbines look like
egg beaters.
In 2012, wind turbines
generated 2% of all of the
electricity production for the
US.
Small turbines can be used by
single families. In some
cases, families can sell their
extra wind produced electricity
back to the city.
http://www.eia.gov/kids/energy.cfm?page=wind_home-basics
The largest wind farm is in Texas. It has
421 wind turbines and generates
enough electricity to power 220,000
homes per year.
BIOMASS and BIOGAS
Biomass is the energy that comes from plant and animal matter
and waste. Biomass contains stored chemical energy from the
sun. Plants absorbed this energy in photosynthesis. This energy
transfers to animals and people when they are eaten. When the
biomass is burned, the stored chemical energy is released as
heat. This heat can be used to produce steam to make
electricity. It can also be used as methane gas, ethanol, or
biodiesel (transportation fuels).
The major advantage of burning biomass
is that it gets rid of waste material. It is
also reliable and available all over the
world.
In developing countries, people are
learning how to use biogas digesters
to convert manure into methane gas
that can be used to heat their homes
and for electricity.
http://www.blogmost.com/8-advantages-disadvantages-of-biomass-energy/
Geothermal Energy Sequencing
Cut apart the sentences in strips. Put the cards in order of how geothermal energy is used. Use the geothermal reading to help you.
Pipes send cold water down into rocks under
Earth’s surface. The heat in the rocks heats the
water and turns some of it into a high pressure
steam.
The steam rises in pipes into the power plant on
the surface. The pressurized steam moves
quickly and spins blades of a turbine.
The turbine spins a generator. The generator
mechanically converts the energy into an electric
charge.
The electric charge is sent into a generator and
is transferred by electric wires in a circuit.
This electricity is sent to homes, businesses, and
Geothermal Energy Sequencing
• Pipes send cold water down into rocks under Earth’s surface.
• The heat in the rocks heats the water and turns some of it into a
high pressure steam
• The steam rises in pipes into the power plant on the surface.
• The pressurized steam moves quickly and spins blades of a turbine.
• The turbine spins a generator.
• The generator mechanically converts the energy into an electric
charge.
• The electric charge is sent into a generator and is transferred by
electric wires in a circuit.
• This electricity is sent to homes, businesses, and other buildings.
Hydropower Sequencing Cards
Cut apart the statements in strips. Put them in order according to how we use hydropower. Use the Hydropower story to help you.
Water moves quickly down a river or through a dam
The water moves through pipes in the power plant
The moving water turns blades of a turbine
The turbine spins a generator
The generator converts the moving water into
electrical energy
This electrical energy moves through power lines from
the power plant to consumers who want to use it
Hydroelectric Power Sequence
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Water moves quickly down a river or through a dam
The water moves through pipes in the power plant
The moving water turns blades of a turbine
The turbine spins a generator
The generator converts the moving water into
electrical energy
• This electrical energy moves through power lines from
the power plant to consumers who want to use it
What am I ?
• I am a form of energy collected by moving
water
• Water flows (due to gravity) through pipes
• It then turns a turbine and spins a generator
• This generator converts the moving water to
from mechanical energy to electricity
What am I ?
• I am a form of energy collected by heat from
under the surface of the Earth
• Water flows through pipes underground
• The heat in the rocks undergrond turns the water
into vapor
• In Iceland, individual people use this type of
energy to heat their homes.
• This energy can be found near volcanoes, hot
spots, plate boundaries, and geysers.