GEMS Solar House project

2(A) plan and implement investigative procedures including asking questions, formulating testable hypotheses, and selecting and using equipment and technology;

2(B) collect data by observing and measuring;

2(C) organize, analyze, evaluate, make inferences, and predict trends from direct and indirect evidence;

2(D) communicate valid conclusions; and

2(E) construct graphs, tables, maps, and charts using tools including computers to organize, examine, and evaluate data.

3(A) analyze, review, and critique scientific explanations, including hypotheses and theories, as to their strengths and weaknesses using scientific evidence and information;

3(C) represent the natural world using models and identify their limitations;

3(D) evaluate the impact of research on scientific thought, society, and the environment;

5(A) identify a design problem and propose a solution;

5(B) design and test a model to solve the problem; and

5(C) evaluate the model and make recommendations for improving the model.

10(A) illustrate interactions between matter and energy including specific heat;

12(C) predict the results of modifying the Earth's nitrogen, water, and carbon cycles.

14(C) describe how human activities have modified soil, water, and air quality

Science TEKS website: http://www.tea.state.tx.us/rules/tac/chapter112/index.html

The Lesson:

I. Overview:

Students will explore the use of visual and infrared light rays to heat homes and relate this information to how solar thermal heat works. Students will learn to classify solar heating systems as passive or active. Students will compare how solar energy and non-renewable energy sources affect the environment.

Source: Energy Information Administration, Electric Power Annual, Form EIA-860, Annual Electric Generator Report database, 2006. http://www.eia.doe.gov/kids/energyfacts/sources/renewable/solar.html (17 March 2009)

II. Objectives:

Students will be able to:

Distinguish between sun light called visual light and heat rays called infrared light.
Discribe how solar thermal heat works.
Compare the effects of covered and uncovered windows on solar heating.

III. Materials and supplies needed:

Per student:

1 model house with thermometer
1 piece of cardboard 6

Per group

1 roll of transparent tape

IV. Handouts:

Per student:

1 Data sheet “Solar House Experiment”

Engagement

10 minutes

What the teacher will do

Probing Questions

Student Responses Potential Misconceptions

Your car that has been sitting in the sun with the windows up.

What do you think it is like inside and why?

How does the sun heat the car?

When you say sun shines what do you mean?

What kinds of rays are emitted from the sun?

Burning hot.

The sun made it hot.

The sun shines in the car and bounces around making it hot.

The sun rays come down from the sun.

Sun light.

Exploration

15 minutes

What the teacher will do

Probing Questions

Student Responses Potential Misconceptions

Before students go outside, I will explain the set up of the experiment: Houses will be set on the insulation board and each house, both with and without a window covering, will face the sun. (the same direction) Students will form there hypothesis before class goes outside to the area experiment will be done. Class will be divided into groups of 4. Each group will conduct experiment as directed.

What is the same of all the houses? What are the constants?

What is the experimental variable that is being tested?

What will our observed results be?

Which house will heat up the most?

All houses are white and all have a window.

Half of the houses will have windows exposed.

The other half will have the windows covered.The sun will heat the houses.

The houses with exposed windows will heat up most.

Explanation

5 minutes

What the teacher will do

Probing Questions

Student Responses Potential Misconceptions

When experiment is complete class will go back inside.

Class discussion.

What was your hypothesis?

Which of the houses heated up the most?
What are the sunrays being emitted by the sun?

What do the sunrays do in the house with window covered? Explain.
What happens to the sunrays when they hit the house with exposed windows?

The House with exposed windows will heat up most.
House with exposed window.

Sunlight or visible light and heat rays or infrared light bounces off the window covering.

Visible light and infrared light passes through the window and bounces around. Visible light passes back out of the window while only half of the infrared rays pass through the window.

Elaboration		5 minutes
What the Teacher Will Do	Probing Questions	Student Responses Potential Misconceptions
Class discussion	When we see how the sun rays work in the house, when would you want it to be warmer?	In the winter the house needs to be warmer.
	What other factors might affect how much heat a house gets?	Weather, such as rain and cloudy days.
	Is solar energy an unlimited resource for energy? Explain?	Yes, it is an unlimited resource. It is a resource that will never run out.
	What are other forms of unlimited energy sources?	Wind power, underwater generators that will harness ocean currents.
	What will happen if people use unlimited resources?	If we don’t use alternative resources we will not run out of resources.

Evaluation

5 minutes

What the teacher will do

Probing Questions

Student Responses Potential Misconceptions

Students will answer questions about what was discussed in class and about what was learned in today experiment.

Students will design another experiment to test a factor discussed during our elaboration discussion.

Now you will design an experiment to test factors affecting solar heating. Make sure you keep everything constant except the one factor you are testing.

What was the main idea of our experiment, what happened?

What are heat rays called?

What is the sunlight you see called?

Name the constants and the variable used in the experiment?

We were testing things that make a house warmer in sunlight.

Infrared energy

Visible light.

We all had the same house.

Whether the window was exposed or not.