Putting Wind Energy to Use

Wind Energy Icons.png

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Students learn how wind is used to generate energy and will learn about the design process by designing a wind turbine. 

Time: 140 minutes; implemented in one session

Materials:

  • Pre-Activity Checklist 

  • Tell My Story Form 

  • Computer with projector, speakers, and Internet access 

  • Video: What Is the Engineering Design Process? (PBS Learning Media)

  • PowerPoint: Putting Wind Energy to Work 

  • Student Handout: Putting Wind Energy to Work Challenge, 1 per student 

  • Student Handout: Wind Turbine Templates, 1 per team 

  • Pencils, 1 per student 

  • Wind Turbine Challenge Kit, 1 set of the following items per team of three to four students:

    • 3 sheets of plain paper, 8 ½ in. x 11 in. (22 cm x 28 cm) 

    • 3 sheets of construction paper, 8 ½ in. x 11 in. (22 cm x 28 cm) 

    • 1 single-hole punch 

    • 1 pair of scissors 

    • 4 rubber bands 

    • 6 straws 

    • 2 paper cups 

    • Piece of string (20 in. or 51 cm)

Cost: US$40 (or less) in materials costs when completing this activity with 30 students organized into teams of five students.