KidWind Developed Lessons

 

	Energy Notions Using images and drawings you can better understand what students think about the future of renewable/non renewable energy before you start to teach them about it.
	"See" the Wind Using kites and caution tape you can help students see the variability in wind speeds due to turbulence and friction near the surface of the earth.
	Wind Farm Scale Models In a hands on activity students visualize how big windmills will look for a proposed offshore wind farm.
	Designing Wind Blades Students design and test wind blades on a small PVC turbine
	Siting Wind Projects In a hands on activity you can help students see the complexities faced by a community that wants to build a large wind farm in their township.
	Wind Power Curves What is a wind power curve and what does is tell us about a wind turbine?
	Collect & Analyze Local Wind Data Using a simple data logging anemometer and Excel we can do some pretty sophisiticated analysis of the wind resources around your school or home.

 

 

     - Units : helpful units and coversions for wind energy math

     - Gear Ratios : calculate gear ratios and see how gears are used in wind turbines           (Elementary-Middle School)

     - Triangle Height Measurements: estimate the height of a wind turbine by using similar            triangles
          (Elementary-Middle School)

     - Swept Area : calculate the swept area of your turbine blades using the area of a circle           (Middle School-High School)

     - Coefficient of Power : measure the efficiency of a wind turbine by calculating its            coefficient of power  
          (Middle School-High School)

     - Word Problems : Explore the math and economics behind wind energy with these            challenging word problems
          (Middle School-High School)

     - Tip Speed Ratio: measure wind turbine tip speed ratios and learn about optimal TSRs for            turbines
          (High School)

     - Answer Key

 

 

Offsite Lessons

 

Ithaca City Schools - Wind Energy Unit (8th Grade) - Part I. Students are part of a task force that decides if a wind farm can be built in Tompkins county. To do this, students research and debate the issues surrounding wind farms, then come to a consensus. Part II. Students learn Arc GIS a geographic mapping program to determine the best location to place a wind farm. In the process they learn how to use Arc GIS, learn which geographic factors impact wind farms and make decisions on which of these factors are most important.