Station 1: Happy/Sad Spheres
Exploring Potential and Kinetic Energy
Question: What will happen when you drop each of the spheres?
Procedure:
1. Take the two black spheres and drop each of them from a height of 50 cm to the floor.
2. Record the height after the bounce of each dropped sphere on line #1 of your data sheet and label as
room temperature.
3. Place each of the black spheres into the cup of hot water for two minutes.
4. Remove the spheres and again drop each of them from a height of 50 cm to the floor.
5. Record the second set of heights of each sphere on line #2 of your data sheet labeled as hot water
temperature.
6. On line #3, describe what happened with the highest bouncing ball both before and after it was heated.
7. On line #4, describe what happened with the lowest bouncing ball both before and after it was heated.
8. On line #5, write a sentence to describe what type of energy transformation is happening with the black
spheres. Use the information sheet to help you.
Vocabulary:
absorb, collision,
Station 2: Yo-yos
rebound,
thermal energy,
potential energy,
kinetic energy
Exploring Potential and Kinetic Energy
Question: How is energy being transferred in the toy?
Procedure:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Take one yo-yo for each member.
Hold the string and release the yo-yo allowing it to drop to the floor without pulling up on the string.
Repeat, but this time pull up on the string to cause the yo-yo to climb to your hand.
On line #1 of your data sheet, describe what you think causes the yo-yo to go down each time.
On line #2 of your data sheet, approximately how far back up the string does your yo-yo return the
first time?
6. On line #3 of your data sheet, tell me why it does not go all the way back to your hand.
7. On line #4 of your data sheet, tell me what form of energy is stored in the yo-yo.
8. On line #5, describe the types of energy transformations that are happening in the yo-yo.
Vocabulary:
Conversion, friction, gravity, kinetic energy, mechanical energy, potential energy,
motion
Station 1: What Was Happening?
Potential and Kinetic Energy
Happy and Sad Spheres
When an object is moving, it has kinetic energy. When an object is still, but is in a position so that gravity can move it, it
has potential energy. A rock at the top of a hill has potential energy. As it rolls down the hill, the potential energy turns
into kinetic energy—the energy of motion.
A collision occurs when a moving object hits another object. When you push a sphere, your hand gives it kinetic energy.
The faster it goes, the more kinetic energy it has. When the sphere runs into your other hand, there is a collision. If it stops
completely, it loses all its kinetic energy. The law of conservation of energy says that energy is neither create or
destroyed. The energy cannot just disappear. Where does it go?
The kinetic energy is converted into other kinds of energy – like sound and heat. Usually, when there is a collision, an
object doesn’t stop completely. It rebounds. This means it has not lost all of its kinetic energy. The sphere will continue
bouncing until it no longer has any kinetic energy.
When you held the sphere above the table you gave it energy. If you
drop the sphere, you know it will fall because of the force of gravity.
This energy of position is its potential energy. One of the spheres you
dropped bounced back about 30 centimeters (cm); this is the happy
sphere. That means it kept about 65 percent of its energy. Where did
the rest of the energy go? When the sphere hit the table, could you
hear the collision? Part of the energy was changed into sound. Part
of the energy was also changed into heat, or thermal energy. The
sphere and the table are both getting hotter every time you drop the
sphere, even though you cannot really feel the difference.
The other sphere you tested also had the same amount of potential
energy at the beginning, but it hardly bounced. What happened?
This sphere is not broken. It is a sad sphere. It is made of a different
kind of rubber. (The happy sphere is neoprene rubber and the sad
sphere is polynorbornene rubber.) Almost all of the kinetic energy
changes into other forms of energy. Most of the sphere's kinetic
energy changes into sound and heat. Feel both of the spheres. Do
they feel different? Does the happy sphere seem harder than the sad
sphere? The sad sphere is softer, so its shape can change more easily
and it can absorb more energy in a collision than a happy sphere.
When you put the sad sphere into hot water the sphere absorbed
heat energy from the hot water. The sphere bounced higher. Since
the sphere has absorbed thermal energy from the water, it cannot
absorb much more thermal energy from the collision. The sphere
retains more of its kinetic energy and bounces higher. As the sphere
cools down, it loses its thermal energy and more of the energy can
be changed into heat when it hits the table. The cooler it gets, the
less it bounces. These experiments show us how potential energy is
changed into motion and how motion is changed into sound and heat.
The happy sphere (left) keeps more
of its energy, allowing it to rebound
higher than the sad sphere (right).
More of the energy in the sad sphere
is transferred into heat and sound.
Station 2: What Was Happening?
Potential and Kinetic Energy
Yo-yos
When you let go of the yo-yo, how far back up the string did
it come? The yo-yo only came a little over half way. Why did it
not come back to your hand? Friction between the string and
the yo-yo changed some of the motion energy into heat energy.
Where is the energy stored that makes the yo-yo come back
up after you let it go? The energy is stored in the yo-yo. Because some
of the potential energy was converted to heat energy, you had to add
more energy by pulling up on the yo-yo to get it to return all the way
up to your hand.
Potential energy can be stored in many spinning objects, which
sometimes are called flywheels.
This demonstration has explored potential and kinetic
energy, and how we can change energy from one form to another.
Station 3: Baking Soda and Vinegar
Exploring Chemical and Thermal Energy
Question: How is the temperature of vinegar affected when combined with baking soda?
Procedure:
1. Measure out 10mL of vinegar and empty into a plastic zip-lock bag.
2. Feel the bag and observe how the temperature feels. Record this observation on line #1 of your data
sheet.
3. Place the thermometer in the bag. Make sure the bulb of the thermometer is in the solution. After
two minutes, record the temperature on line #2 of your data sheet. Leave thermometer in the bag.
4. Carefully add one level spoonful of baking soda to the bag and mix gently. (Be careful as the
reaction will cause foam to fill the bag)
5. After 30 seconds, record the temperature inside the bag and record on line #3 of your data sheet.
6. Remove the thermometer from the bag and carefully seal the bag.
7. Feel the bag again and record your observations on line #4 of the data sheet.
8. What type of energy transformations occurred in this activity. Write about them on line #5 of your
data sheet.
9. Dispose of your closed plastic bag in the garbage can.
Vocabulary: Chemical reaction, exothermic, endothermic, potential energy, expand, kinetic energy, thermal
energy, temperature
Station 4: Calcium chloride and water
Exploring Chemical and Thermal Energy
Question: How is the temperature of water affected when combined with calcium chloride?
Procedure:
1. Measure out 10mL of distilled water and empty into a plastic zip-lock bag.
2. Feel the bag and observe how the temperature feels. Record this observation on line #1 of your data
sheet.
3. Place the thermometer in the bag. Make sure the bulb of the thermometer is in the solution. After two
minutes, record the temperature on line #2 of your data sheet. Leave thermometer in the bag.
4. Carefully add one spoonful of calcium chloride to the bag and mix gently
5. After 30 seconds, record the temperature inside the bag and record on line #3 of your data sheet.
6. Remove the thermometer from the bag and carefully seal the bag.
7. Feel the bag again and record your observations on line #4 of the data sheet.
8. What type of energy transformations occurred in this activity. Write about them on line #5 of your data
sheet.
9. Dispose of the sealed bag in the garbage can.
Vocabulary: Chemical reaction, exothermic, endothermic, potential energy, expand, kinetic energy, thermal
energy, temperature
Station 3: What Was Happening?
Endothermic and Exothermic Reactions
Baking Soda and Vinegar
Chemical reactions occur when you mix two chemicals together to form another chemical. All chemical
reactions involve heat. Some give off heat and some use heat.
An exothermic reaction gives off heat. Exo- means out and thermal means heat. Exothermic—the heat goes out.
An endothermic reaction uses heat. Endo means in and thermal means heat.
Endothermic—the heat goes in.
Mixing baking soda and vinegar caused an endothermic reaction—it
used heat. Combining vinegar and baking soda together made other
chemicals: water, carbon dioxide, and sodium acetate.
When you added baking soda to the vinegar you were able to
visually see a reaction taking place. The temperature of the liquid
also dropped, which you could tell by feeling the bag, and from your
thermometer reading.
The mixture felt colder because the reaction used heat energy. It
was an endothermic reaction. The heat that was in each substance
individually was stored in the bonds of the new chemical that was
formed. The reaction took heat from the mixture and transformed it
into stored chemical energy.
Most chemical reactions do not take in heat like the vinegar and
baking soda. Most chemical reactions give off heat—they are
exothermic.
An endothermic reaction occurred when you
combined vinegar and baking soda.
Station 4: What Was Happening?
Endothermic and Exothermic Reactions
Calcium chloride and water
Chemical reactions occur when you mix two chemicals together to form another chemical. All chemical
reactions involve heat. Some give off heat and some use heat.
An exothermic reaction gives off heat. Exo- means out and thermal means heat. Exothermic—the heat goes out.
An endothermic reaction uses heat. Endo means in and thermal means heat.
Endothermic—the heat goes in.
Mixing calcium chloride and water caused an
exothermic reaction—it released heat.
When calcium chloride came into contact with water,
it dissolved into a solution. In this investigation you
witnessed an exothermic reaction. You saw the temperature
increase and could feel the difference, which also let you know
heat was being given off.
A common use for calcium chloride is driveway ice melt.
You can buy driveway ice melt at your local hardware store
to melt the ice on your driveway during the winter.
Calcium chloride (the small, round spheres) is commonly
used to melt ice on driveways and sidewalks.
Station 5: Sunlight and Shade
Exploring Radiant Energy ( also known as Light
Energy or Electromagnetic Energy)
Question: How much does direct sunlight affect the temperature of an object?
Procedure:
1. Tape one thermometer to each side of a cardboard.
2. Label one side “sunny” and the other side “shade”.
3. Record the starting temperature of both sides and record on line #1 of your data sheet.
4. Place the cardboard so the sunny side is facing the direct light and the shade side is down on the white
paper.
5. After 2 minutes, record the temperature of both sides and record on line #2 of your data sheet.
6. Return the cardboard to the testing position for an additional 2 minutes.
7. At the end of the testing period, record the temperature of both sides and record on line #3 of your data
sheet.
8. On line #4 of your data sheet, record the types of energy transformations happening in this activity.
9. On line #5 of your data sheet, explain how direct sunlight affects the temperature of an object using reallife examples.
Vocabulary:
absorbs, radiant (light) energy, thermal energy, transform
Station 6: Radiometers
Exploring Radiant Energy (Light Energy or
Electromagnetic Energy)
Question: How does light affect radiometers?
Procedure:
1. Observe the radiometer from all angles. Do not move the radiometer.
2. Turn on the flashlight and point it the radiometer. Record your observations on line #1 of your data
sheet.
3. Turn on a second flashlight and point at the radiometer. Note any changes you observe on line #2 of
your data sheet.
4. Turn off all the flashlights. Record your observations of the radiometer on line #3 of your data sheet.
5. Looking at the vanes of the radiometer, which direction does it turn, toward the white side or toward the
black side? Record your choice on line #4 of your data table.
6. Do you think the radiometer would work if all the vanes were the same color? Why or why not?
Record on line #5 of your data table.
Vocabulary: absorb, expand, molecules, motion, radiant (light) energy, thermal energy, transform, vacuum
Station 5: What Was Happening?
Sunlight and Shade: Radiant Energy into Heat
You may have heard the expression, “It was 100 degrees
in the shade.” Why do people say that? Even when the air
temperature is the same, it feels hotter when you are in
the sun than when you are in the shade. When you are in
the sun, the sun’s radiant energy is absorbed by your body
and turned into heat energy, making you feel hotter. In the
shade, you only feel the heat from the air molecules striking
your body. The thermometer facing the light has a higher
temperature because the sun’s radiant energy is being
transformed into thermal energy.
Sitting in the shade protects you from directly
absorbing the sun's radiant energy, keeping
you cooler.
Station 6: What Was Happening?
Radiometer: Radiant Energy into Motion
Did you realize that light can make things move? In the radiometer investigation, you saw light change into
heat, then into motion—radiant energy into thermal energy into motion.
The radiometer has very little air inside the bulb; it is almost a vacuum. The black and white vanes are
balancing on a needle. There is nothing else inside the bulb. When you put the radiometer in the light, the
vanes begin to turn. How is the light making the vanes turn? Black objects get hotter than white objects in the
sun. That is why people wear light colored clothes in the summer. A black object absorbs most of the radiant
energy that strikes it and reflects only a little. A white object reflects most of the radiant energy that strikes it
and absorbs only a little.
When you put the radiometer in the light, the vanes absorb sunlight. The radiant energy is changed into heat.
The black side of the vane is absorbing more energy than the white side. When the air molecules hit the black
side, they bounce back with more energy than when they hit the white side. The brighter the light, the faster the
vanes turn. If both sides of the vanes were the same color, the vanes would never move because the air
molecules would be bouncing off the vanes with the same amount of force.
Below is a picture of the radiometer from the top. When the air molecules hit the white sides of the vanes, they
push a little. When the air molecules hit the black sides of the vanes, they push a lot.
Since there is more of a push on one side than the other, the vanes begin to turn. The more radiant energy that
reaches the radiometer, the more thermal energy is produced, and the faster the vanes spin.
Radiant energy is changed into thermal energy, which causes motion.
Station 7: Battery and Compass
Exploring Electrical Energy
Question: How does an electric current affect the needle of a compass?
Procedure:
1. Take the 1 D battery in the battery holder and attach the alligator clips to each wire, completing the
circuit.
2. Use the looped wire and pass it over the compass.
3. Observe the movement of the needle. Record what happens on line #1 of your data sheet.
4. Move the wires back away from the compass. Record what happens on line #2 of your data sheet.
5. Move the battery closer to the compass. Repeat the movement of the wires over the compass. Record
your observations on line #3
6. Move the wires and battery back away. What happens to the compass needle now? Record your
observations on line #4 of your data sheet.
7. When the wires are touching, electricity is passing through them. On line #5, write how the electricity
affects the needle of the compass.
Vocabulary: conduct, electricity, electromagnet, energy flow, magnetic field,
Station 8: Shake Battery
repel, direct current
Exploring Electrical Energy
Question: How does shaking the flashlight cause it to produce light?
Procedure:
1. Observe the flashlight and describe the parts you can see using line #1 of your data sheet.
2. Hold the flashlight horizontally and gently shake it back and forth so the metal cylinder in the center
passes back and forth through the coiled wires.
3. On line #2, describe what happens when you turn on the flashlight.
4. On line #3, write the name of the moving part on the inside of the flashlight.
5. On line #4, write what you think the substance is that makes up the coils in the flashlight.
6. On line #5, write the energy transformations that happen to make the flashlight work.
Vocabulary: copper, magnet, coils, electromagnetic, LED (light emitting diode), electricity, light energy
Station 7: What Was Happening?
Battery and Compass
Using a battery, a piece of copper wire, and a compass, you were able to convert electrical energy into motion.
When you clipped the ends of the wire to the ends of the battery holder there was an electric current produced,
creating a magnetic field. When you placed the wire and battery over the compass, the magnetic field
caused the needle to move.
You should have seen the needle of the compass start moving. The
electric current flowed through the wire and turned the wire into
an electromagnet. The needle in the compass is also a magnet,
pointing to north. When two magnets are placed together they
either attract or repel each other. Passing the electromagnetic field
of the battery and wire over the compass caused the needle of the
compass to move.
When you picked up the wire and moved it over the compass, the
needle moved. This is because the magnetic field around the wire
is like a circle magnet—one side is the north pole of the magnet
and the other side is the south pole.
In this investigation we have used electrical energy from a battery
to move the needle of a compass. Chemical energy in the battery
was transformed into electrical energy and then into motion of the
compass needle.
Electric current flows through the wire, turning it into an
electromagnet. The magnetic field around the wire
interacts with the needle in the compass, causing it to
move.
Station 8: What Was Happening?
Shake Flashlight
A shake flashlight works by converting motion into electrical energy. Electricity is powering the light. The
handle contains a metal cylinder, which is a magnet. Surrounding the cylinder is a coil of copper wire with two
wires leading to a capacitor and an LED light bulb.
As you shake the flashlight, the magnet passes back and forth inside the coils of copper wire, creating an
electric current. This electricity is stored in the capacitor as electrical energy, then is released to power the light
bulb.
As you shake the flashlight, an electric current is generated that flows to the capacitor, which begins to store the
electrical energy. The light will stay on as long as the capacitor is charged. When the flashlight is shaken
quickly, the light is much brighter. The more energy put into the system, the more energy is stored in the
capacitor and the more energy there is to produce light.
Station 8: What Was Happening?
Hand Generated Flashlight
A hand generated flashlight works by converting motion into
electrical energy. Electricity is powering the light.
The handle is connected to a gear that spins a metal disk, which is
a magnet. Above and below the disk are two thin coils of copper
wire with two wires leading to a capacitor and LED light bulbs. The
magnet spins inside the coils of wire, creating an electric current.
This electricity is stored in the capacitor as electrical energy, then is
released to power the light bulb.
As the handle is squeezed, an electric current is generated that
flows to the capacitor, which begins to store the electrical energy.
The light will stay on as long as the capacitor is charged. When
the handle is squeezed quickly, the light is much brighter. The
more energy put into the system, the more energy is stored in the
capacitor and the more energy there is to produce light.
In a hand generated flashlight, motion energy is transformed into
electrical energy and radiant energy.
Station 9: Homemade Speaker
Exploring Electrical to Sound Energy
Question: How does the sound come out of the cup?
The speaker was made by wrapping a wire around a tube many times to make a coil. The coil was then taped to
the bottom of the cup. The ends of the coil are attached using the clips to the wires of a headphone jack. A
strong magnet is placed on the coil and the jack is plugged into a sound source.
Procedure:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
Plug the headphone jack from the speaker
into your sound source.
Use the magnet attached to the craft stick
and touch the magnet to the coil.
Move the headphone jack from the cup speaker to
the pie plate speaker. Listen carefully to the two
sounds and record your observations on line #1.
On line #2, does the volume control from your sound source work on your speaker?
On line #3, describe the kind of sound quality do you get out of your speaker comparing the loudness and
the clarity to normal headphones.
On line #4, describe what type of energy transformation is happening.
On line #5, try to explain how the homemade speaker reproduces sound.
Vocabulary:
electromagnet,
sound waves,
transfer,
Station 10: Photovoltaic Cells
vibrations,
medium,
coil,
amplified
Exploring Light to Electrical to Mechanical Energy
Procedure:
1. Use the light provided and observe the Solar House and the Dancing Flower by shining the light on the
photovoltaic(solar) cell. On line #1 describe the energy transformations happening.
2. Slowly pull the light back away from the PV cells. Describe what happens to the motion of the ceiling fan
and the house light on line #2.
3. On the Solar House, the black tubes represent water lines going up to the roof and back to the water tank.
What energy transformation is happening in these lines? (line #3)
4. Can you name something else that uses photovoltaic cells? (line#4)
5. If this were a real house, what challenges would you have using this as your source of energy? (line #5)
Vocabulary:
Photovoltaic,
passive, thermal (heat),
kinetic,
radiant (light),
solar
Station 9: What Was Happening?
Homemade Speaker
The speaker works because an electrical current, which represents the sound from the radio,
passes through the wire coil, making it an electromagnet. When electricity flows through the
wire, a magnetic field is generated around the wire. When the wire is wrapped in a coil form,
the magnetic field around the wire is “amplified” because of the overlapping magnetic fields.
When you bring the permanent magnet close to the coil, it’s magnetic force acts on the
electromagnetic force of the coil. As the coil is attracted and repelled by the magnet this causes
the cup to move back and forth with the coil which vibrates the cup, producing the sound.
Station 10: What Was Happening?
Photovoltaic cells
Photovoltaic (or PV) systems convert light directly into electricity. The term photo comes
from the Greek phos, which means “light.” The term volt is a measure of electricity.
Photovoltaics literally means light–electricity.
Commonly known as solar cells, PV cells are already an important part of our lives. The
simplest PV systems power many of the small calculators and wrist watches we use every day.
Larger PV systems provide electricity for pumping water, powering communications equipment,
and even lighting homes and running appliances.
The basic building block of PV technology is the photovoltaic cell. Different materials are
used to produce PV cells, but silicon—the main ingredient in sand—is the most common basic
material. Silicon, a common semiconductor material, is relatively cheap because it is
widely available and used in other things, such as televisions, radios, and computers. PV cells,
however, require very pure silicon, which can be expensive to produce.
The amount of electricity a PV cell produces depends on its size, its conversion efficiency, and
the intensity of the light source. Efficiency is a measure of the amount of electricity produced
from the sunlight a cell receives. A typical PV cell produces 0.5 volts of electricity. It takes just a
few PV cells to produce enough electricity to power a small watch or solar calculator.
Solar House
The model solar house has three types of solar panels.
Panel A- Solar Electric Panel
A photovoltaic panel with a fisheye lens pattern will collect light waves from all angles for maximum
efficiency.
Panel B- Solar Electric Flexible Plastic Panel
This represents the new flexible solar shingles that are being made in industry today. They are less
likely to break and still work if a hole is put in the panel.
Panel C- Solar Thermal Panel
This panel uses dark tubing to absorb the thermal (heat) energy from the sun, warming the water inside
the tubes to provide energy efficient hot water for the house.
In North America, an energy efficient home will be built facing South and West to take advantage of the sun’s
rays in winter and less in the summer when it could cause the house to heat up too much.
Dancing Flower
Today, many toys use photovoltaic cells to transform radiant (light) energy to electrical energy which is
then transformed into mechanical energy (motion). This allows the toys to move if it is in light without using a
battery that needs to be replaced. The disadvantage is that the toy does not move if there is no light. Some
systems use PV cells to produce electrical energy that then charges a battery (chemical potential energy). The
battery can then be used later to convert to electrical energy to convert to mechanical energy.