An attractive concept/mind map that illustrates various human strategies for responding to climate change. It was developed by a psychologist and not by an educator or scientist but can be used to inspire discussion and artistic representations of the human dimension to climate and energy issues.

In this course you will learn how to ensure good indoor thermal comfort and air quality, and how these factors relate to building design and to buildings’ energy systems. Comfort complaints mean user dissatisfaction, which in turn means delays and resistance to accept technologies needed for low carbon emission buildings. So if you want to discover what to pay attention to in your energy designs, or in designing new concepts for sustainable buildings, this course is for you.

AE 868 examines the theories and design practices of solar electric systems in the context of utility and commercial-scale applications. An important goal of the course is to equip solar professionals with skills to follow the impact of hardware trends in industry on feasibility, design, and the commissioning of such systems. Students will learn how to design solar electric systems as well as the processes required for permitting, construction, and commissioning. Topics include conceptual design of solar electric systems, solar electric technologies, inverter and power management technologies, design theory and economic analysis tools, system design processes for grid-tied and off-grid systems, integration of energy storage and demand response systems, construction project management, permitting, safety and commissioning, system monitoring, and maintenance.

This article describes some common misconceptions that elementary students may have about energy, heat, and insulation. It also includes suggestions for formative assessment and teaching for conceptual change.

This article lists common misconceptions about light, heat, and the sun. It provides formative assessment probes and information about teaching for conceptual change.

In this activity, students collect data and analyze the cost of using energy in their homes and investigate one method of reducing energy use. This activity provides educators and students with the means to connect 'energy use consequences' and 'climate change causes.' Through examining home energy use and calculating both pollution caused by the generation of electricity and potential savings, students can internalize these issues and share information with their families.

SYNOPSIS: In this lesson, students are introduced to biomass energy and use algebra to calculate the amount of land needed to produce biofuel using different plants.

SCIENTIST NOTES: This lesson introduces students to biofuels and how they are sourced, including the supply chain. It does not only equip them to compute the acres of land needed to grow crops to produce biofuels but allows them to compare biofuels with other renewable energy sources, including the benefits and limitation to scale up. All the materials have been fact-checked, and they are suitable to build students' knowledge on the topic. Hence, this lesson has passed our science credibility process.

POSITIVES:
-Students have opportunities to think critically about the topic of renewable energy in their community.
-Students have the chance to use math in a real-world application, which makes it more relevant and engaging.

ADDITIONAL PREREQUISITES:
-This is lesson 4 of 5 in our 6th-8th grade Renewable Energy Algebra unit.
-This lesson could be used as a standalone lesson if desired.
-There are quite a few drawbacks and challenges to large-scale biofuel production and use. Students should begin to see this through their calculations and discussion. An optional extension video is included at the end of the lesson that looks more at some of the issues with biofuel.

DIFFERENTIATION:
-Teachers can have students work with a partner on the calculations in the Investigate section and purposefully group students based on skill level.
-Teachers can work in a small group with students who may need additional assistance with the calculations.
-Teachers can limit the number of questions students complete. Questions get progressively more difficult on the Student Document.
-Interdisciplinary connections can be made with Earth science, physical science, and engineering design.

In this lesson, students are introduced to biomass energy and use algebra to calculate the amount of land needed to produce biofuel using different plants.

Step 1 - Inquire: Students watch a video on biofuels and discuss how biofuels are similar to or different from other renewable energy sources.

Step 2 - Investigate: Students complete real-world math problems that compare the amount of land needed for various biofuel crops.

Step 3 - Inspire: Students explore the current use of biomass in their region using this map and discuss potential benefits and drawbacks to increasing biomass energy in their community.

Carbon calculators, no matter how well intended as tools to help measure energy footprints, tend to be black boxes and can produce wildly different results, depending on the calculations used to weigh various energy factors. By comparing different calculators, learners can analyze which ones are the most accurate and relevant, and which are the most transparent.

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This activity applies to Teaching Principle 2: Climate is regulated by complex interactions among components of the Earth System. It specifically addresses Concept 2A: Earth's climate is influenced by interactions involving the sun, ocean, atmosphere, clouds, ice, land, and life. Climate varies by region as a result of local differences in these interactions. It is anticipated that the activity will take two 50 - 75 minute class periods with additional time for follow-up assessment.
Students use web resources to identify climate patterns and distributions and
synthesize the information to develop an understanding of the global variation.

Students develop tables of temperature and precipitation averages and also identify and describe an extreme weather event. This exercise is an inquiry-style lesson and can easily be adapted for use in or out of the classroom.

Note: Prior to this assignment, students should receive some information on how to sample climate data from the GLOBE or NASA sets, or how to find quality online resources about climate and climate variability. This could be done as a walk-through, in-class tutorial of government/ university research centers and SERC sites, comparing the information in each to less reliable sources such as Wikipedia.

(Note: this resource was added to OER Commons as part of a batch upload of over 2,200 records. If you notice an issue with the quality of the metadata, please let us know by using the 'report' button and we will flag it for consideration.)

Compare the change in potential energy when you separate molecules from each versus when you break molecules apart.

Explore a NetLogo model of populations of rabbits, grass, and weeds. First, adjust the model to start with a different rabbit population size. Then adjust model variables, such as how fast the plants or weeds grow, to get more grass than weeds. Change the amount of energy the grass or weeds provide to the rabbits and the food preference. Use line graphs to monitor the effects of changes you make to the model, and determine which settings affect the proportion of grass to weeds when rabbits eat both.

Engineering thermodynamics is a branch of science that deals with the study of energy conversion and its relationship with heat and work. It's a fundamental discipline in engineering, providing the principles necessary for the analysis and design of various energy systems and processes. In this article, topics such as the systems, state, process, properties of pure substances, heat and work, and thermal equilibrium are meticulously explained to enable easy comprehension. This study guide would enable students to use thermodynamics to optimize the performance and efficiency of engines, power plants, refrigeration systems, and other devices that involve energy transfer. Additionally, understanding this concept of engineering thermodynamics would equip students with the initiative to design a sustainable system that helps mitigate greenhouse gases from fossil fuels.

Students learn how the total solar irradiance hitting a photovoltaic (PV) panel can be increased through the use of a concentrating device, such as a reflector or lens. This is the final lesson in the Photovoltaic Efficiency unit and is intended to accompany a fun design project (see the associated Concentrating on the Sun with PVs activity) to wrap up the unit. However, it can be completed independently of the other unit lessons and activities.

Students design, build and test reflectors to measure the effect of solar reflectance on the efficiency of solar PV panels. They use a small PV panel, a multimeter, cardboard and foil to build and test their reflectors in preparation for a class competition. Then they graph and discuss their results with the class. Complete this activity as part of the Photovoltaic Efficiency unit and in conjunction with the Concentrated Solar Power lesson.

This topic is broken into units to help in formulating cohesive, effective lessons. Clicking on each unit title will display appropriate activities, lesson plans, or labs. Units are intended to help students understand the interconnectedness of the concepts of conservation of energy, momentum and angular momentum underpinning the basis for much of physics. Units are not listed in a prescribed order.

Seeing how light energy can excite electrons which can be used to create ATP and NADPH (with oxygen as a byproduct).

This interactive, scaffolded activity allows students to build an atom within the framework of a newer orbital model. It opens with an explanation of why the Bohr model is incorrect and provides an analogy for understanding orbitals that is simple enough for grades 8-9. As the activity progresses, students build atoms and ions by adding or removing protons, electrons, and neutrons. As changes are made, the model displays the atomic number, net charge, and isotope symbol. Try the "Add an Electron" page to build electrons around a boron nucleus and see how electrons align from lower-to-higher energy. This item is part of the Concord Consortium, a nonprofit research and development organization dedicated to transforming education through technology. The Concord Consortium develops deeply digital learning innovations for science, mathematics, and engineering. The models are all freely accessible. Users may register for additional free access to capture data and store student work products.

This 90-minute activity features six interactive molecular models to explore the relationships among voltage, current, and resistance. Students start at the atomic level to explore how voltage and resistance affect the flow of electrons. Next, they use a model to investigate how temperature can affect conductivity and resistivity. Finally, they explore how electricity can be converted to other forms of energy. The activity was developed for introductory physics courses, but the first half could be appropriate for physical science and Physics First. The formula for Ohm's Law is introduced, but calculations are not required. This item is part of the Concord Consortium, a nonprofit research and development organization dedicated to transforming education through technology. The Concord Consortium develops deeply digital learning innovations for science, mathematics, and engineering.

This concept-building activity contains a set of sequenced simulations for investigating how atoms can be excited to give off radiation (photons). Students explore 3-dimensional models to learn about the nature of photons as "wave packets" of light, how photons are emitted, and the connection between an atom's electron configuration and how it absorbs light. Registered users are able to use free data capture tools to take snapshots, drag thumbnails, and submit responses. This item is part of the Concord Consortium, a nonprofit research and development organization dedicated to transforming education through technology.