Teacher OnlyModule 12: Energy for the Future

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TEACHING SUGGESTIONS

Video

The video Tesla: Master of Lightning is used in Activity 2 to introduce electricity-related concepts and to show students how generators work. Go to the Ford PAS Online Catalog for information about obtaining this video. If you are unable to acquire a copy of the video, there is a suggested alternate activity in Session 8 that students can access online.

Projects

During Activity 6, students are asked to gather information about the lighting system of the school building in which the class is held. Students will need to look at the lights in different rooms around the building in order to complete this task. You may want to make sure ahead of time that students will be able to do this during class. You can also have students complete this assignment (described in the Student Guide in Session 24) before the beginning of Activity 6.

Classroom Visitors

Student presentations of their redesigned products in Activity 6 provide an opportunity to invite design professionals and/or educators to visit the class and act as an audience. These people can provide feedback from the perspective of business and higher education that will help students continue their design work. For ideas about locating potential visitors and speakers, refer to the BEAC Toolkit. Contact school representatives at least a month before students will present their energy plans.

Worksite Visit
A visit to a design firm and/or a manufacturing facility will help students see how the knowledge they learn and the skills they master in this module apply to potential career choices. If there is not enough time for a worksite visit, invite a speaker from one of the following professions to talk to the class about the design aspects of his or her work:
HOMER Software
In Activity 5, students use HOMER, NREL's micropower optimization software, to analyze power systems that use renewable resources to provide for at least part of their energy supply. Students use the software to determine which combination of energy technologies could best be used to power a library, using data that they are given about the library’s location and about the potential components of the system. Click here to learn how to download HOMER.

Preparing Materials
This module requires a variety of materials in addition to reproducible masters and computers. You’ll need to gather or prepare materials in advance of the session for which they are needed (and, as some are required for Session 1, you will want to order or collect these before beginning the module). For items that can be found at home, such as metal cans, request that students and other school staff help by bringing in those they have around the house. Some of the materials for Activities 1–3 will need to be purchased from Radio Shack or another supplier of electronics equipment. Other specialized equipment, such as a gram scale and digital thermometers, may be available in your school’s science lab or may need to be purchased. For a detailed list of these materials, see the materials lists below. In the Materials Needed list for each activity, the lightning bolt icon indicates items for which more information can be found in the following materials sections.
Throughout the module, the quantities of materials needed are given on a per-team basis. Teams should ideally consist of four to six students; more than six students per team will make it difficult for everyone to participate in the experiments. You should plan your purchase and collection of materials accordingly. Click here to find the current cost estimate for the items from Radio Shack or a similar store for a class of 24 students arranged into four teams. This cost does not include other specialty equipment, such as a gram scale, which may be available at your school, or other items required for the experiments, such as nails and lemons.

Materials List: Electronics Equipment bolt
You will need to purchase the following materials from Radio Shack or a similar store. The Materials Needed list in each activity lists the quantity of each item needed per team. You will need to determine the quantities to purchase based on the number of teams in your class. See below for links to items at the Radio Shack Web site.

Activity 1

Activity 2

Activity 3

Materials List: Other Specialized Equipment bolt

The following items, used during Activities 2 and 3, may be available in your school's science lab. If not, these items will need to be purchased.

Teacher Only ENERGY FOR THE FUTURE MATERIALS NEEDED

Also refer to the special Materials List for Module 12.

Other materials you'll need can be found in the Resource Materials List: http://www.fordpas.org/teachers/MaterialsList.asp

Activity 1: Energy Innovations (5 Sessions)

SESSION 1

For each Lemon Energy team:

  • Copy of RM 1.1 Lemon Energy Experiment
  • Three lemons
  • Three copper nails or strips (must be pure copper for experiment to work)
  • Three zinc washers, nails, or strips (must be pure zinc for experiment to work)
  • Four alligator clip cables, or short pieces of copper wire, each end stripped of insulation and wrapped around an alligator clip
  • Light-emitting diode (LED), 1.8V, 20mA

For each Pulling Energy team:

  • Copy of RM 1.2 Pulling Energy Experiment
  • Small low RPM motor with battery leads attached and lightweight disk (or small
    gear) that press-fits onto the motor shaft (motor must be low-RPM, or experiment
    will not work)
  • Wire strippers
  • Five centimeter (two inch) long piece of stiff tubing, about 0.6 centimeters
    ( 0.25 inch) in diameter (cap from a disposable ballpoint pen works well)
  • Hot glue gun and glue stick
  • LED, 1.8V, 20mA
  • Two alligator clip cables, or short pieces of copper wire, each end stripped
    of insulation and wrapped around an alligator clip
  • Spool of thread
  • Roll of tape (masking or duct)
  • Scissors

For each Candle Energy team:

  • Copy of RM 1.3 Candle Energy Experiment
  • One piece of plain white paper
  • Pair of scissors
  • Pushpin
  • Spool of thread
  • Two candles of the same height and width (diameter should be no more than 5 centimeters [2 inches])
  • Box of matches

SESSION 4

SESSION 5

Activity 2: Energy Transformations (6 Sessions)

SESSION 6

For all teams to share:

For each team:

  • Ten nuts, all of the same kind and approximately the same size (each team should have a different kind of nut—peanut, pecan, Brazil, and macadamia work well)
  • Large metal can, such as a juice or coffee can, with both ends removed
  • Small metal can, such as a soup can, with one end removed
  • Metal skewer
  • Needle
  • Cork (such as a wine cork)
  • Three cups of water at room temperature
  • Measuring cup with metric units, or teaspoon
  • Thermometer that reads to at least 100°C, preferably digital
  • Ten extra-long wooden matches
  • Calculator
  • Hot pad or chemistry tongs

SESSION 7

SESSION 8

SESSION 9

For each AC Generator team:

For each DC Motor team:

SESSIONS 10 and 11

SESSION 11

Activity 3: Making Energy Work (5 Sessions)

SESSION 12

For teams to share:

For each team: (if possible, have some teams use the tube, disk, and motor assembly from Activity 1)

SESSION 13

SESSION 14

Activity 4: Comparing Technologies (4 Sessions)

SESSIONS 17 AND 18

SESSION 19

SESSION 20

Activity 5: Establishing an Energy Plan (3 Sessions)

SESSION 21 SESSION 22 SESSION 23

Activity 6: Designing an Energy System (7 Sessions)

SESSION 25 SESSIONS 25–28

SESSION 29

SESSION 30