Cross-curricular Goals
"Cross-curricular instruction is an instructional strategy that offers a way for teachers to plan lessons that incorporate more than one disciplinary area. This allows students to broaden their lens of understanding and apply skills and strategies they learn in lessons to deepen their overall understanding and make authentic, real-world connections. Cross-curricular instruction also allows students the opportunity to learn skills in different contexts."
Kindergarten– Grade 2 (Sara)
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Wind Energy: Kindergarten to second grade students can begin to understand how wind energy works. They can read different stories like “Willie the Windmill” by Lonnie Rogers and Melody Wynne. They can begin to understand what renewable is and how it is better for the Earth. After they read the story, they can draw their own windmills. This will work their reading and drawing skills.
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Solar Energy: Kindergarten to second grade students can start to understand how solar energy works. There are many books for kids on solar energy like “Solar Power” by Andrea Rivera. After they read the story, they can make a poster explaining the benefits of solar power. This will help their reading comprehension and their creativity and writing.
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Water Energy: Children can begin to learn about how water energy and dams can produce energy. They can read stories like “Water Power” by Laurie Brearley. After they read, they can create their own water wheel. These activities will strengthen their reading and science skills.
Grades 3-5 (Leigh)
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Science/Home Economics: Students learn about how we can use solar energy, including for cooking. They work in groups to create a solar box cooker using simple materials like aluminum foil and cardboard boxes. After they construct their cookers, they can test their designs with some solar-cooked s’mores.
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Engineering/Language Arts: Students work together to research and learn about hydropower. They create a brochure or poster to display their findings. Next, they watch a video with lots of ideas about how to design and construct their own hydropower turbines. They will work in their teams to make their own turbines, finally taking them outside and testing their turnability.
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Hands-on Learning/Social Sciences: Students visit a local ranch to learn about renewable energy sources from the experts. They take their knowledge back into the classroom and work on one of two projects: drafting a proposal to the local government for the installation of more wind turbines; or creating an infographic or invitation for an event in the community related to clean energy.
Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FuG5D69Fl78&t=1s&ab_channel=PerotMuseumofNatureandScience
Middle School (Pam)
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Language/Science-What is energy? Students work together to research and create their own definition of energy. In order to do so they can create a Word Splash first of terms they associate with the concept of energy then they can start filling out an “Energy Detective sheet” to identify where there might be evidence of energy. The students can choose to present their findings in any manner visual manner they wish to (PPT, poster, realia) and as a group they should come up with one definition for the term.
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Math/Science- Renew-a-Bean- Through this activity students can begin to form an understanding of renewable and nonrenewable materials. Have each group have 100 beans with a 92% of one color bean and 8% of another to represent the amount of renewable materials on watch vs. non-renewable resources. Have students experiment with one being blindfolded and taking out a certain amount of beans each time to represent harvest and replacement. Once they have gone through the activity a few times they can come up with some ideas to extend the use of renewable resources as far as possible. The can present their findings to the class afterwards
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Edible Garden- students learn about the seasons and the type of crops grown in each. As groups they grow different plants and study the yield produced. They can investigate what compost they can use to grow a healthy crop and present successes and failures to the class. As a home-economics class, the groups can come up with a recipe that uses the vegetables grown.
High School (Jacqueline)
Action plan
Students will dive into inquiring about clean energy (renewable energy) makes little to no air pollution. Therefore, learners will understand that it is safer than non-renewable energy. Plus, clean energy sources like solar, wind, and hydropower will never run out. This makes them reliable for the future.
Engagement in Making a Solar Oven
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Students will be engaged in building a solar oven that actually works.
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Students of different learning types will be engaged in this hands-on activity.
Materials
There is a list of materials needed for students to construct the oven. However, they are given choices to discover and do trial and error methods in order to reflect on areas that glow and need to grow. Have students carry out modifications to the provided design and challenge them to optimize their oven.
Resources to consider for students to make strong connections to the topic are:
-What Are The Environmental Benefits of Solar Energy? - YouTube
Subjects:
Social Studies
Students could use the above resources to discuss solutions for communities experiencing power outages or areas without electricity.
Literature
Make a book report about renewable energy and the use of solar in different parts of the world.
Math
Students make comparisons of electric usage to solar energy. To visibly show their thinking, they will use chosen types of graphs to showcase the comparisons.
Source: Mrs Martin (n.d) teacher pay teachers- Clean Energy activities from https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/FreeDownload/Earth-Day-Nonfiction-Reading-Passage-FREEBIE-Clean-Energy-5414988
References:
ACES. (2018, October 11). Energy Experts: Project-Based Learning in Action at Crystal River Elementary School. https://www.aspennature.org/blog/energy-experts-project-based-learning-action-crystal-river-elementary-school
Perot Museum of Nature and Science. (2020, April 20). Hydropower Challenge | Amaze Your Brain at Home [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FuG5D69Fl78
Schreck, J. (n.d.). Renewable Energy Activities – Choices for Tomorrow. National Renewable Energy Laboratory.
Strecker, K. (2021, October 5). Cross-Curricular Instruction. Curriculum Leadership Institute. Retrieved July 1, 2022, from https://cliweb.org/cross-curricular-instruction/
Trimble, T. (2018, August 24). How to Build a Solar Oven With Your Kids. Fatherly. https://www.fatherly.com/play/how-to-build-a-solar-oven-with-your-kids