Curated OER
Solar Car Races: Build and retrofit for speed
If you have solar car kits for your junior high schoolers, they can experiment with photovoltaic cell angle, light intensity, and aerodynamic design to discover what makes their car move more quickly. This is a classic activity to use...
Curated OER
Solar Car Series: Angle/Energy Amount
Does the angle of a solar panel change the output? Emerging engineers find out! Demonstrate for your class how they can angle a straw to match the angle of light rays coming from a source. Then turn them loose to experiment with the...
Curated OER
Solar Car Series: during What Part of the Day Can the Most Sun Power Be Collected?
In preparation for solar car races, middle schoolers attempt to discover what time of day the most solar energy can be collected. Begin by demonstrating the use of a voltmeter for measuring solar cell output. Take them outdoors to take...
Teach Engineering
Racing With the Sun - Creating a Solar Car
Here's an exciting and innovative lesson that's sure to get your charges fired up! In it, they use engineering design principles to construct and test a fully solar powered car. One caveat: the kits that each group needs to make their...
Curated OER
Solar Racing
Students design and construct a solar-powered model car. They watch a PowerPoint presentation, construct the car in small groups, and participate in a car race.
Curated OER
Design and Race a Solar Car
Students design, construct and evaluate a solar powered model car. In this solar power lesson students compete in a "solar sprint" race once their car is created.
Curated OER
Solar Racing
High schoolers harness the power of the sun to design, construct and evaluate a solar-powered model car of their creation. They race their cars in a "Solar Sprint" race modeled after the National Renewable Energy Laboratory's Junior...
Curated OER
Solar Racing
Students design and build solar-powered cars. For this renewable energy lesson, students view websites showing a Department of Energy contest and solar-powered car design guidelines. They work in teams to design and build prototypes of a...
Curated OER
Solar Car activity
Students study the basic concept of solar energy. They build a working solar car. Students comprehend how solar energy can be produced via a solar panel. They examine the physics that describe how a solar panel works.
Curated OER
TE Activity: Racing with the Sun - Creating a Solar Car
Students use a purchased kit to build a solar powered car. They connect a solar photovoltaic panel to a motor which runs the car forward and backward. They determine how to wire the car to move in both directions.
Illustrative Mathematics
Robot Races
Analyze data on a graph to answer three questions after a robot race. Learners practice comparing ratios and reading points on a graph. Answers may vary on the last question based on accuracy of graphing. Use the lesson along with three...
Curated OER
Let's Make a Solar Car
Students transform a car that they have built out of K'NEX into a solar car. Students add one or two solar cells to the car to power a DC motor then connect the motor to the car and come up with a method to drive the car. This is the...
Curated OER
Solar Race Cars
Learners explore the relationship between time traveled, distance and speed. In this solar race car lesson students wire solar batteries using series and parallel circuitry.
Curated OER
Solar Powered Cars
Students build and race solar powered cars after a teacher lecture. They answer questions based on their experiences with the car they build.
Curated OER
A Tall Ship and a Star to Steer Her By
Young scholars create a water transportation device powered by wind. In this wind power lesson, students research transportation concepts after reading the poem "Sea Fever" by John Masefield. Young scholars design the fastest sailboat...
Curated OER
Adjectives
In this adjectives worksheet, students copy the sentences and add in adjectives to make the sentence more interesting. Students then write 5 adjectives to describe the following items: racing car, teddy bear, sword, teapot, cottage,...
Curated OER
Get Geared Up
Middle schoolers calculate gear ratio as they solve word problems. They discuss and find slopes as they relate to real life. Additionally, they hey use ratio and proportion to make predictions and solve problems.
Curated OER
Momentum
In this momentum worksheet, students review the equations for finding momentum using the mass and speed. They solve eighteen problems using the equation for momentum to find the unknown.
Illustrative Mathematics
Buying Bananas, Assessment Version
Practice with unit rates, proportions, and ratios when Carlos purchases an amount of bananas. Learners must interpret a graph to decide whether points on the same line represent similar proportional relationships. Use with lesson plans...
TeachEngineering
Teach Engineering: Racing With the Sun Creating a Solar Car
Students use engineering design principles to construct and test a fully solar powered car. Several options exist, though we recommend the "Junior Solar Sprint" (JSS) Car Kits that can be purchased with direction from the federal...
PBS
Pbs Learning Media: Solar Racing
This is an extensive project in designing and building a solar-powered car model. Students must make detailed calculations and design decisions about wheel size, gear ratio, how to get the most energy from the sun, air drag, friction,...
Other
National Renewable Energy Laboratory: Junior Solar Car Competition
A design challenge through which students design and construct a solar-powered model car to compete in a road race. Students work in teams using the engineering design process to select the optimal gear ratio and components.