Title
Wind/Water Energy
Description
Year 8 Modified Curriculum
Key Stage 3
Area Designing
Objectives
To introduce the students to ways of harnessing renewable sources for energy and having them devise ways to have this energy do work
Equipment Required
Full range of workshop tools plus electric motors and wire.
Richard Murray
Abbey Hill School Technology College
Plan
Draw the water cycle on the board and discuss it with the students and how the energy may be used. The energy is available in different forms at various pints in the system. Discuss how the wind may be made to do work either directly or indirectly. Sketches on the board will support the above descriptions.
A number of students believe that windmills and water wheels are merely scenic devices which spin round AND THAT IS ALL THEY DO!.
Students generally speaking have never looked at the sails on a toy windmill and have to be shown the shape of a sail i.e. the twist required for it to spin in the wind.
The students choose which resource that they wish to use for power and sketch possible ways of tapping the resource chosen. The students should suggest realistic ways of using the power produced.
From their sketches the students should produce a simple working drawing with some dimensions added. They should also produce a work plan.
There will be some demonstrations required at various times during this project.
There will be some alterations in design during this project these should be noted and stored in the students file.
EVALUATION SHEET..... The power produced can be measured as weight lifted or electricity produced etc.
CAUTION.. In order to generate a reasonable amount of power, enough to light a bulb you need a hurricane or a very efficient water wheel and a tap running full blast. The latter is very messy indeed and a guard should be constructed. Experience has shown that an electric motor generating power as a dynamo will power another motor more easily than a bulb. Windmills fare no better than water wheels when generating power but they can and do lift impressive weights as will water wheels.
