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Title
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Grade Level
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Type
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Time
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Materials
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Summary and Activity Goals
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K – 8
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Introduction
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5 – 10 min
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None
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Open the class by assessing student knowledge and generating curiosity about solar and renewable energy. This can be a whole group discussion, or modified to groups or pairs, at the teacher’s or your discretion.
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K – 8
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Introduction or Presentation
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10 – 15 min
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Printed photos
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Students gain a basic understanding of the ways we generate electricity.
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6 – 8
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Introduction
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5 – 10 min
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None
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Share some quick facts about solar energy to get students interested.
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K – 8
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Presentation
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15 – 20 min
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Handout
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Following a simple visual diagram/coloring page, students gain a basic understanding of how a PV solar system works. You may tailor the level of detail to the students’ level.
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K – 2
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Group Game
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5 – 10 min
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None
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Students physically model how photons “excite” electrons inside a solar cell to create an electric current.
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K – 2
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Individual or Group Activity
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10 – 20 min
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Coloring pages, pens, pencils, markers
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Students complete coloring activities to gain a basic understanding of solar energy.
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3 – 5
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Group Game
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5 – 10 min
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None
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Students play a game to actively model how photons travel through a solar electric system.
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3 – 5
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Individual Activity
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10 – 15 min
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Sticky notes
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Students independently think about how to creatively implement or invent a renewable energy technology.
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3 – 8
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Individual or Group Activity
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15 – 20 min
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Markers, colored pencils, or crayons. Large pieces of paper.
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Students apply what they have learned about solar and other forms of renewable energy to imagine a 100 percent renewable home, school, city, or world. Students will think about the forms of renewable energy discussed in class, and have a chance to think creatively about ways to apply current technology or invent new ones!
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6 – 8
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Presentation
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10 min
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Printed or projected graphs
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Students see how solar production varies depending on season and time of day.
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Opening Questions (Grades K-3)
The following is an example of how one might lead young students into a discussion about solar energy. Consult with the teacher to make sure your approach is appropriate for students’ levels.
Flip the light switch in the classroom on and off. Ask students: When I flip this switch, what makes the lights turn on?
Some students may know the word electricity. Write Electricity on the board, and briefly explain: Electricity powers our lights, TVs, computers, and anything else that plugs in. It’s a special kind of energy.
Does anyone know where electricity comes from?
Students might say power lines, factories, etc.
Usually, electricity is made at power plants. We burn coal or natural gas to make electricity, and then send it to cities and towns using power (or transmission) lines. Here’s a picture. (For photo options, see Forms of Energy. If you wish, you may discuss the pros and cons of different forms of electricity production with students.Today, I’m going to talk about a special kind of electricity that’s made by the sun. It is called Solar Photovoltaics, or Solar PV for short. Has anyone seen a solar panel before?
Do you know how solar panels work?
It is recommended to follow this activity with Sunshine Game for younger students, or How does solar energy work? for older students.
Opening Questions (Grades 4-8)
The following is an example of how one might lead older students into a discussion about solar energy.
Where does electricity come from? How do we make electricity?
Ask students to think of as many ways as they can. Bring photos of various kinds of electricity generation, and post them on the blackboard or whiteboard. For links to photos, see Forms of Energy.What does “renewable energy” mean? What kinds of energy are renewable or nonrenewable?
Using the same photos you have posted, ask students to explain which kinds of energy are renewable or non-renewable.
Renewable means: not depleted when used.
Forms of Energy (Grades K-8)
Ask students “How do we make electricity?”
Prepare large printed photos of various forms of renewable energy, and briefly explain how each one works.
Here are a few image links for various forms of electricity generation. (Note: we do not own any reproduction rights for these images. Please use at your own discretion, and credit appropriately).
How does solar energy work? (Grades K-8)
Using the Solar Flow Coloring Page, guide students through the basics of a home solar system. Key is below:
- Sun
- Solar Panel (Module)
- DC Disconnect
- Inverter
- Main Service Panel & Meter
- AC Loads (Lightbulb)
- Utility Grid
For K-2 grade students, you may want to limit the explanation to the sun, solar panels, light bulb, and grid.
Ask students to take a pencil or marker and trace the “flow” of energy from the sun, to the solar panels, to the light bulb, and back to the grid. If we are not using all of the electricity from our solar panels, then the extra electricity goes to the grid, where other people can use it.
Has anyone had a power outage at home? The Main Service Panel and DC Disconnect keep us and electrical workers safe. If there is a power outage, we don’t want electricity from our solar panels “leaking” out to the grid, where it could shock someone who is trying to fix the power lines.
“AC” means alternating current. It means that the little packets of energy (called electrons) are moving back and forth very quickly, like bumper cars. “DC” means direct current. This means that little packets of energy (called electrons) are moving all together in the same direction, like cars on a racetrack. We use “AC” power at home for many reasons. In general, it’s safer and easier on our appliances. It’s also much easier to send over long distances. Our solar panels produce “DC” electricity, so we need to change it to AC using an inverter.
The light bulb is an example of an AC Load. A load means anything we use that is powered by electricity. It is called a “load” on our electrical system because we have only a limited amount of electricity we can use at the same time. We do have some appliances that use DC power, and require an adapter. One example is a laptop computer.
This system shows two meters. The production meter measures how much electricity the solar panels are producing. The usage meter measures how much electricity the house is using.
The power lines are called the Utility Grid because the utility owns and maintains this system – everything from the power plants to the lines that bring power to our home. Our electricity bill pays for the cost of maintaining this system. The bill is based on how much electricity we use each month. This is tracked by our usage meter. (In some cases, a company may want to monitor how much electricity the solar panels are producing, usually when we have a lease arrangement.)
Net metering means that we save money on our electricity bill based on how much extra energy our solar electric system produced. Just how much money we save depends on state laws.
Sunshine Game (Grades K-5)
Imagine that you are a tiny part of a solar panel. When the sun is shining, you can take energy from the sun. You get energized, and you and your friends can pass that energy into the house’s electrical system. When it is cloudy, you do not have as much energy. And when it is n
ight time, you have no energy! When I say “Sunshine!, stand and wave your hands in the air. You have so much energy to send along! When I say “Cloudy!”, sit in your chair and wave your hands a little less. You do not have as much energy. When I say “Night time!”, sit in your chair and “go to sleep”. The solar electric system is not producing any energy.
Materials: Coloring pages, pens, pencils, markers
For younger students we recommend the Planet Janitor coloring book, particularly pages 15 – 16.
This activity simulates photons coming from the sun and exciting the electrons in the silica within a solar panel. Students should stand or sit in a line with their hands facing up, next to their classmates.
One student stands outside of the rows and represents the sun.
When he or she says “Sunshine!”, the first student hi-fives the person next to him or her. Explain that this is akin to when the photon gives energy to the electron. That electron is excited and bumps into the adjacent one. Students simulate this by (gently!) high-fiving the person next to them, passing the imaginary energy from the photon. Remind students that they cannot “pass” the energy along until their hand is high-fived. The last student in line then raises their hand and says “Lights on!”. The first row to turn the lights on wins.
Materials: Sticky notes
This activity is a great transition from brainstorming and explaining the different kinds of renewable energy technology currently available. Take a moment to inspire the students and explain that all of these current forms of technology were once just an idea, and that you are now going to give the students an opportunity to think creatively about ways to incorporate the current forms of technology or create a new form of renewable technology. Pass out sticky notes and explain students can write down as many ideas as they like, draw pictures, create diagrams, etc. If students are feeling stuck, you can encourage them to be silly with their answers (for example, a giant hamster spinning a wheel for energy), or you can talk through some ideas with them that you may have. When students are finished brainstorming their ideas, ask for some volunteers to share their ideas. If there is space in the classroom, and the teacher agrees in advance, you can ask students to place their sticky notes on a posterboard or a wall of the classroom to display their work. End the activity by reiterating that they may hold the solution or idea for the next great renewable energy technology!
Materials: Markers, colored pencils, or crayons. Large pieces of paper.
Have students think about a “100% renewable” home, school, city, or world. What would that look like? Break into groups to draw pictures, write down ideas, and make presentations. Ask students to include at least one of the forms of renewable energy discussed. If you wish to show students some current research about possible renewable energy solutions.
You can form questions out of these fast facts to get students thinking about renewable energy.
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- Who won the Nobel Prize for describing the photoelectric effect, and how light (photons) can excite electrons? (Albert Einstein)
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- When was the first solar module (often called solar panel) developed? (1954)
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- Which President was the first to put solar panels on the White House? (President Jimmy Carter, in 1979)Which President had them removed, and why? (President Ronald Reagan, in 1981 and here’s why)
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- Who was the second President to put solar panels on the White House? (President Barack Obama, in 2010)
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- In 1999, total installed PV solar exceed 1 GW. In 2012, world PV capacity exceeded 100 GW – 31 GW of which was installed in 2012.
- In 2012, renewable sources of energy (solar, wind, geothermal, etc.) accounted for 5 percent of global generation.
Looking at solar data (Grades 6-8)
At schools that have a solar electric system, you may be able to log on to a monitoring interface to show students the power being generated on-site. Show graphs that demonstrate variation based on time of day and season. Ask students what the bars represent. Then ask students why some bars are higher than others. Discuss the ways that solar energy production differs depending on the season – not because it’s colder outside (panels actually do better in cold temperatures), but because there are fewer hours of sunlight. If you don’t have access to on-site solar data, you can download a seasonal production graph here.