Curated OER
Windmill activity
Students explore how to build an efficient windmill design by taking into account how the lift and drag caused by the movement of wind can be used to make the blades of the turbine move. Through their readings, hypothesis and by trail...
It's About Time
Renewable Energy Sources - Solar and Wind
There has been a huge solar energy spill! Let's go outside to play in it. This lesson includes multiple experiments showcasing solar and wind energies. Scholars build a solar heater and an anemometer before testing the results. The...
Curated OER
Kite building activity
Students explore how a kite flies; this instructional activity is a precursor for the windmill activity. By exploring how a kite flies, the students explore the power of the wind; particulary how drag, lifft and gravity enable objects...
American Chemical Society
What is Wind?
Engage creative minds with an exciting activity about the power of wind. Investigators participate in class discussions while viewing images and animations of air and wind. Scholars test the relationship between wind speed and an...
Curated OER
Wind Power
Fourth graders develop an understanding of how engineers use wind to generate electricity. They will build a model anemometer to better understand and measure wind speed. They discover that engineers design wind turbines that generate...
Curated OER
Science: Wind Power
Students build models of wind turbines and experiment with different designs that will improve efficiency. Students will understand the use of wind power as a renewable resource.
Curated OER
Energy Transformations
High schoolers investigate energy transformation in the form of wind energy. They read a handout, answer questions, identify points in an energy system where transformations occur, and build a wind turbine.
Wind Wise Education
What Causes Wind?
Through watching several classic air pressure demonstrations, middle schoolers determine that high pressure areas move toward lower pressure areas, heated air causes a drop in pressure, and forces exist when pressures are unequal. By...
DiscoverE
Puff Mobiles
You've probably heard of solar-powered cars, but what about wind-powered cars? Scholars build cars that can travel at least six feet. They can only use their breath to move the car—so, obviously, a sail might be a good feature for the...
NASA
Rocket Wind Tunnel
Using a teacher-built wind tunnel constructed from a paper concrete tube form, a fan, and a balance, individuals determine the amount of drag their rocket design will experience in flight. Pupils make modifications to increase the...
Curated OER
Thar She Blows!: Wind Power
Students examine how wind energy is transformed into electrical energy. In pairs, they build miniature wind turbines and measure how much electrical current they produce. They asses the importance of design and position in energy...
Curated OER
Harnessing Wind
Students explore the ways that engineers study and harness the wind. They study the different kinds of winds and how to measure wind direction. In addition, students learn how air pressure creates winds and how engineers build and test...
Carnegie Mellon University
How Power Plants Work 1
First of three lessons, this is a great start to a unit on energy. As you demonstrate, learners discover different types of energy and how it is converted from one form to another. They then focus in on the generation of electricity by...
DiscoverE
Kinetic Sculpture
Let your creativity run wild. Scholars build a sculpture out of basic materials. These sculptures must be able to move in the wind (from an electric fan). However, they must also withstand the wind enough to not fall over—it's quite the...
Curated OER
The Air Out There
Students build windmills and weather vanes. In this lesson on air, students build wind vanes and windmills to demonstrate that air moves. Students determine the direction of air movement and measure the speed at which it is moving.
Curated OER
Design Project: Power Inverter
In this physics instructional activity, students design and build a power inverter given a schematic diagram. They answer 3 short answer questions about the circuit they created.
PBS
Paddle Power
Potentially get all the way across the water. The fourth of five design challenges asks pupils to develop a plan for a paddle-powered boat that will store its energy. Given a limited number of supplies, the class members design, build,...
Wind Wise Education
Where is it Windy?
How is the wind up there? The class builds a topography model using materials available in the classroom, then place wind flags in different locations on the landscape. Using a fan as a wind source, pupils collect data about how wind...
Curated OER
Flying the Friendly Skies
Students discover the power of wind by flying a glider. In this weather lesson, students describe their thoughts on wind and practice using weather related vocabulary. Students construct model gliders in class and attempt to fly them...
Curated OER
ESL/EFL Lesson Plan - Nuclear Power Plants
High schoolers participate in ESL/EFL activities as they read an article about nuclear power plants. In this ESL/EFL lesson, students read an article entitled, "Germany To Close All Nuclear Power Plants." They work on building...
Curated OER
Build an Anemometer
Students investigate wind speed. In this wind instrument instructional activity, students build an anemometer to measure wind speed and discuss the importance of wind speed knowledge in various professions.
Curated OER
Power Generation
Students examine energy issues. In this environmental stewardship lesson, students discuss nuclear power options. Students also discuss energy consumption and create energy reduction guides for students their own age. Many links to...
Curated OER
Lesson 2 - Design Process-Measuring Wind Speed
A terrific instructional activity focused on the design process. It begins with a presentation, "Design: Solve a Problem," which lists the steps of the process and then introduces the specific challenge: to build a device that measures...
Curated OER
The New Wind Turbine
Students study the basic components of a modern wind machine. In this investigative lesson students investigate and find out if there are any wind machines in their state, how many and how much power they produce.