Upper Elementary and Middle School
Although the activities provided here were designed for grades 3-4, they can easily be adapted for upper elementary and middle school students. We’ve provided links to the original activities along with ideas for ways to adapt the activities for use with older students. In addition, we recommend really involving students at this age in the promotion of the program. In our experience creative activities like skits, designing promotional posters, using in-school media, working with school wide environmental groups and even mentorship programs can help spread the word about Junior Energy.
Activity 1: Race to Space - click to download now
In this activity, students get up and moving, using their bodies to simulate the buildup of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. If you’d like to add depth to the activity for more advanced students, consider comparing the graphs you create in the simulation to actual graphs depicting the buildup of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Some of the sites where you can find these graphs include: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/warming/etc/graphs.html, and http://www.eia.doe.gov/bookshelf/brochures/greenhouse/Chapter1.htm.
Older students can also spend time looking more closely at how the greenhouse effect works. The US Environmental Protection Agency has developed kid-friendly animations that illustrate the process of climate change: http://epa.gov/climatechange/kids/animations.html.
Finally, students can also research what effects rising global temperatures may have on sea level, wildlife, human populations, and other parts of life on Earth.
Activity 2: Does it Really Add Up? - click to download now
This activity focuses on savings. Students calculate how the change to CFLs will affect their energy use, their wallets, and the planet. You can make this activity more challenging for older students by having the students figure out how to do the calculations on their own, rather than using the student worksheets that walk them through the calculations. This can offer an excellent opportunity to practice real-world problem-solving skills.
Older students may also be able to research other common items, such as cars and household appliances, to investigate the amount of energy, money, and emissions that can be saved with different models. (Two government websites, http://www.energystar.gov/ and http://fueleconomy.gov/, might be especially helpful.)
Activity 3: Real Kids, Real Power - click to download now
Using stories of real kids who have made a difference, this activity helps kids simulate a newscast. If you’d like to expand on this activity, consider having the students research stories of things kids are doing and write the script for the newscast. You can also have students write stories for a mock newspaper or website. Finally, if you’re participating in the Junior Energy campaign, you and the students can work together to write a press release to send to your local media outlets.
Activity 4: Lighting the Way to Your Inner Poet - click to download now
This activity blends science with creativity. Students express emotions, experiences, and facts about CFLs through the creation of seven different kinds of poetry. Incorporates a variety of language arts standards.
Activity 5: The Power of Persuasion - click to download now
In this activity, students put their persuasive writing skills to work in support the school's Junior Energy program. They'll get a fact sheet that gives them the information they need, a worksheet to help plan their writing, and depending on the level of your group, the students can write a range of different kinds of persuasive products. Focuses on language arts skills.
More Activity Ideas:
A quick web search will lead you to many resources for teaching about energy conservation. A few that might be helpful for this age group include the following:
Energy Hog
http://www.energyhog.org/adult/educators.htm
The Energy Hog Challenge provides curriculum materials for teaching about different sources of energy, how we use energy at home, and how to save energy. Each student can become an Official Energy Hog Buster upon completion of the lessons. Designed for grades 2-6, it’s standards-based and covers the subject areas of Science, Math, Technology, Language Arts and Social Studies.
US Department of Energy
http://apps1.eere.energy.gov/education/lessonplans/topic.cfm/topic_id=3
The US Department of Energy provides a variety of resources for teaching about energy conservation. The Waste Watchers activity
http://apps1.eere.energy.gov/education/lessonplans/plan.cfm/lpid=244, in which students conduct an energy audit, may be particularly appropriate for use with this campaign.
The site also includes a simple demonstration activity (http://apps1.eere.energy.gov/education/lessonplans/plan.cfm/lpid=227) that can help demonstrate the differences between CFLs and standard bulbs.
Climate Change Animations
http://epa.gov/climatechange/kids/animations.html
Want help illustrating how climate change works? The US Environmental Protection Agency has made kid-friendly animations that illustrate the process of global warming.
Alliance to Save Energy
http://www.ase.org/section/_audience/educators/lessons/middle/
The Alliance to Save Energy has collected a variety of activities for teaching about energy issues. Spend time looking around this site for other helpful resources, including information about the Green Schools program.
Environmental Protection Agency’s Climate Change Kids’ Site
http://www.epa.gov/climatechange/kids/index.html
The EPA’s climate change site for kids includes a variety of resources for students and teachers including background information, activities, animations, games, and more.