Energy Conservation
Denise Koser - Edwards-Knox Central School District
Intended Audience
Content Area: Science
Grade level: 4th
Technology Integration
Hardware: Smartboard, Computer lab
Internet resources: Thinkfinity-Power Up
Project Learning Tree
United streaming- Discovery Education
Climate change- Kid’s site
U.S. Dept of Energy – Kid’s Zone
Other Content Areas for STEM Integration
ELA
NY State Learning Standards:
Science Standard 4, (Elementary-The Living Environment- Human decisions and activities have had a profound impact on the physical and living environment.
Performance Indicator 7.1c, Humans as individuals and communities change environments in ways that can be either helpful or harmful for themselves or others.
Problem Statement:
How can we conserve energy and thereby help the environment?
Essential questions:
How does the use of energy affect the environment?
What is the difference between renewable and non-renewable resources?
What can we do to have a positive affect on energy usage?
Learning Objectives-
Students will create skits/puppet shows to perform for other students to encourage energy conservation.
Necessary Resources:
Text/workbooks: National Energy Foundation-Take the Challenge workbook
Reference Books: Several library books, such as Just A Dream by Chris Van Alsburg
Handouts: Energy IQ quiz
Rubric for skit development and evaluation
Steps for Implementing Learning Experience –
Students brainstorm various ways they already know to save energy at home/school.
Give Energy IQ Quiz and discuss correct answers
Complete Take the Challenge workbook to learn ways to save energy.
Watch portions of An Inconvenient Truth, as well as several Discovery Education video streams that deal with energy conservation.
Smartboard – use several ‘pages’ developed to explain a variety of ways to save energy at home and at school. (See appendix for copy.)
Create a survey to administer to teachers to evaluate current energy saving habits. (See appendix for survey.)
Based on survey question answers, develop skits/puppet shows to promote energy conservation in the classroom. (See appendix for rubric.)
Perform skits for other classes.
Administer survey/reflection activity to determine if improvement in recycling habits has taken place.
Instructional modifications –
Preferential seating is given to several students who have hearing/visual needs.
Students may be grouped according to need for skit creation. (For example, students with OT needs may be grouped so that one person would be the recorder for the group.)
Teaching assistant is available for students who may need further help with writing.
Time used for planning-
Several hours of planning time were devoted to previewing appropriate web sites and video streaming videos to use, as well as editing An Inconvenient Truth for length and content.
About one hour was used to create the Smartboard presentation about energy conservation.
About 30 minutes were used to create the outline/rubric used to organize/assess skits.
Time for Implementation and Assessment –
Implementation- Each of steps 1-6 in the section ‘Steps for Implementing Learning Experience’ required one class period of forty minutes. Creating the plays took several class periods, some groups of students finished sooner than others. The finished plays were performed and critiqued by students and teacher, with revisions being made based on the suggestions offered. This was strictly a cool/warm comments type of assessment with no formal written assessment at this time. This also required several class periods.
Assessment -There will be several opportunities for assessment during this learning experience.
The Energy IQ Quiz will be given at the beginning of the unit and again at the end to measure improvement.
The rubric created and given to students to help them organize their skits will also be used when evaluating the performance of their skits.
Students will also be asked to write a reflection piece describing how the knowledge they have gained about energy conservation and its impact on the environment has changed how they behave at school and at home.
Reflection –
This learning experience was developed to encourage the students to be responsible caretakers of the environment, to teach them how the environment is impacted by their behavior and how their behavior can change the impact on the environment.
I learned that the students themselves can be a force for change in the school and at home. We are now pursuing ways to improve our school’s paper recycling efforts. Students have also been trying to convince me to start a green team at EK.
That has been the biggest bonus of this unit. Finally!!! Something the students really care about learning and that actually changes the way they behave as a result. They have started asking me,”Which basket is for recycling again?” and telling me when they think they have enough light to work without turning the lights on. And if I forget, someone will always remind me to turn off the lights when we leave the room. They also like to share the things that they are doing at home to save energy. At a parent conference, one father complained that his daughter kept unplugging his power saw while he was trying to repair molding. She told him, “I’m just trying to save energy, dad.” Students seemed genuinely excited about taking home a light bulb to replace one in their bedroom and save energy right at home. It’s been so much fun to watch their enthusiasm for saving the planet.
This has been a great opportunity to collaborate with colleagues. We made time to explore possible activities to use with this Unit, bouncing ideas off each other and splitting up responsibilities and activities according to subject and student ability. The students were also happy for the opportunity to work in groups with their friends from the other fourth grade class.
Rigor and Relevance Target- I feel that this learning experience falls in quadrant D. Students must synthesize knowledge (5) to decide which facts and information to include in their skits. They must apply this knowledge to the real-world unpredictable problem (5) of energy conservation; suggesting solutions and encouraging action on the part of others when they perform their skits.
Appendix
Energy Conservation Survey
1. Do you leave the overhead, t.v. ,Smartboard plugged always sometimes never
in when not in use?
2. How often do you use your Smartboard when the always sometimes never
chalkboard or overhead would be just as good?
3. Do you leave the Smartboard on when students are always sometimes never
not in the room?
4. How often do you keep both sets of lights on? always sometimes never
5. Do you leave the computer on while you are teaching? always sometimes never
(and not using it)
6. Do you leave the Smartboard on all day? always sometimes never
7. Do you make sure the students recycle paper? always sometimes never
8. Do you use an electric pencil sharpener? always sometimes never
9. Do you leave a window open when the heat is on? always sometimes never
10. Do you turn down the thermostat at night? always sometimes never
11. Do you turn lights off when not in the room? always sometimes never
12. Do you pull the shades in the summer to keep the always sometimes never
room cool?
