Earlier this year we were able to participate in the annual Punahou School Sustainability Fair which allows students and theirfamilies gain increased awareness about living sustainably. With solar education readily available and events held year-round, it seems like students are learning more about solar power at earlier ages. They are aware of topics such as carbon footprints, renewable resources and lessening our dependency on fossil fuels. Needless to say, we were impressed to see how familiar many of the students were on the topic of solar power and how it works.
Finding ways to teach kids about solar power, a topic that can even be confusing to adults, can be complicated. Here are a few directions one can take to get the young ones interested in learning more about solar.
Visual data:
Although terminology like kilowatts and kilowatt-hours can be confusing, showing this information in pictures and graphscan visually show concepts that would otherwise be difficult to explain. Things to consider: How much energy does our household use vs. how much energy does our PV system produce? How do the different times of day and weather effect the amount of electricity our solar panels produce?
Interaction:
Using science projects or familiar technology can increase interest and knowledge on relevant topics. Perhaps access an existing PV and monitoring system to allow them to measure and track usage and production of power,or use simple calculations to estimate what appliances attribute to the level of electricity you use.
Demonstration:
There are solar kits, cars, and toys that use the same technology we see on solar panels on a smaller scale; this allows them to see up close how the sunlight can create movement, energy and power.
Technology:
Access the online site that the US Department of Energy has created shows kids just how interesting learning about renewable energy an energy efficiency can be.
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