Here is the text of an article by Kathleen C. Rende from the Yale
University-New Haven, CT Teachers' Initiative. The link is:
http://www.yale.edu/ynhti/curriculum/un ... .08.x.html
The article is:
Yale-New Haven Teachers Institute Home
Energetic Energy: A ChildÂ’s Guide to Responsible Energy Use
by
Kathleen C. Rende
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Contents of Curriculum Unit 04.04.08:
Narrative
Teaching Method
Unit Overview
Unit Topics, Rationale and Activity Plans
Bibliography
Appendix: Standards
To Guide Entry
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An appreciation for our environment can be fostered at a very early
age. Along with that appreciation, and awareness of our
responsibility for our environment can be cultivated early in a
childÂ’s life. Children are naturally curious about the world they
live in and can easily become conscious thinkers about their world.
Having young children explore their world by experimenting and
discovering the effect of pollution on the environment can prepare
students for a life of responsibility for their world. A sense of
responsibility for their environment can be coupled with a
consciousness of the effects of food on their own bodies.
Energetic Energy: A childÂ’s guide to responsible energy use
introduces students to an important matter that will effect their
generation and generations beyond. The issue of pollution and world
energy consumption, although not a new problem will become a larger
dilemma as their generation grows older and become energy consumers.
Although there are advances in alternative energy resources the
majority of todayÂ’s energy still comes from fossil fuels. The use of
those fuels poses a threat on the environment and a health hazard to
humans. By introducing students to this problem, we can raise their
consciousness early in their lives and give them the knowledge to
conserve, rather then waste energy and hopefully introduce them to
the alternative energy resources so they can develop better ways
to “get work done”.
By relating energy to work their bodies do, I hope to introduce
student to three major points. First, you canÂ’t get something from
nothing. The first law of thermodynamics states that “Energy is
recognized as an entity found in many different and interchangeable
formsÂ…but in all its transformations the total amount of it never
changes: it is conserved.” (Goldstein, 30-31) By understanding this,
students can relate that to waste and energy conservation. Secondly,
I would like my students to take this idea of waste and relate it to
their bodies. By consuming foods that will not give them the optimal
energy, they will not get the maximum amount of work. If they choose
the right foods they will get the right energy. Lastly, I would like
to relate the idea of waste to the environment. If energy is not
used wisely, waste in the environment can become a health problem to
all organisms.
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Teaching Method
In this kindergarten classroom, I have a unique population. I teach
in a dual language kindergarten classroom where half my students are
learning a second language through content. Throughout the day I
must integrate different teaching strategies to make content
comprehensible to all students in the classroom. By creating an
interdisciplinary unit to explore the concept of energy with my
students, I can allow the student to investigate that topic with
their diverse and individual learning styles.
One of our main goals of the dual language program is the
development of oral language. New words and vocabulary are best
learned while the concepts for those words are being experienced.
When the students carry out the lesson with the teacher, they are
always encouraged to talk about the experiences before, after and
during to allow for the greatest manipulation of language. By
creating a situation where children learn in a small group I help
them gain skills like listening and thinking critically about the
process in which they and their peers acquire information.
Sheltered instruction plays a major role in teaching a population of
second language learners. Strategies such as instructional
conversations, demonstrations and modeling can establish optimal
learning of concepts and vocabulary. (Richard-Amato, p.302-303)
Sheltered instruction includes other methods like contextualizing a
lesson to make it meaningful to a childÂ’s life. The use of graphic
organizers or hands on activities can help a student gain a better
and deeper understanding of the content and the language.
In my classroom, the students work in activity centers for most of
the day so the teacher led activities will always have a follow-up
center that usually consists of a writing/journal center where they
will respond to whatever concept they explore in the teacher led
activity center. All concepts and activities need to be clearly
presented to the students before hand. All activity plans are
written with content and language objective to ensure that
information is presented to every student with his/her developmental
language levels in mind.
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Unit Overview
Introduction
Any child who has had a ride in a car or a bus has a basic
understanding that there is something that makes that vehicle go.
They understand that you have to turn a key before you push on the
pedals to move, and they have probably gone with a parent or
caretaker to “gas up” the car so they know that fuel is required to
make the car go.
The New Haven Public school science standards states that “students
will develop an understanding of personal and community health, of
the characteristics of changing populations, of the ecology of and
uses of natural resources, of changes in environments, and of the
uses of science and technology in addressing present-day local and
global challenges” (section 6.0, New Haven Public Schools Science
Curriculum Standards). Energetic Energy introduces students to these
and many more concepts through an interdisciplinary unit aimed at
engaging students in the scientific process. As they explore
throughout the unit, they will be required to talk, write, draw,
measure and calculate the concepts of this unit.
Unit Sequence
1. The students will explore the idea of energy by creating models
with the teacher of energy transforming into heat, then energy
changing the composition of wood to waste.
2. The students will explore the idea of a need for fuel to make a
Stirling engine.
3. The students will explore the idea of a need for fuel for the
human body as they learn about different kinds of food and how they
affect the body.
4. The students will apply the idea of food converted to energy then
to waste. This idea will be further explored as the topic of wood
burning that creates waste is reintroduced.
5. The students will briefly explore fossil fuels (oil and coal) and
the engines that burn them to gain an understanding of where most of
the United States energy comes from.
6. The students will explore alternative energy and compare that
with fossil fuels to determine what would be a more responsible
choice for energy.
7. Finally, the students will apply the idea of responsible energy
choices to choices about the foods they put into their bodies.
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Unit Topics, Rationale and Activity Plans
1) Energy, Work and Heat
Goals:
1. The students will explore the idea of energy by creating models
with the teacher of energy transforming into heat, then energy
changing the composition of wood to waste.
2. The students will explore the idea of a need for fuel to make a
Stirling engine.
Background Information
Energy comes in many different forms, from motion that can be seen
to the potential for the production of it. There is also chemical
energy like that of gasoline to a car engine or stored energy in
food. Energy such as heat can be stored and used to make motion.
Further, there is nuclear energy of plutonium and hydrogen, to name
a few.
While the idea of all these forms of energy may seem distant and
abstract to a kindergartner, the idea of energy creating work is
not. Work is defined as “the product of a force acting on a body and
the distance the body had moved under the action of the force”
(Goldstien & Goldstien, p. 11) Work can be an observable action that
a student at the kindergarten level can see and respond to. By
pushing against a wall, a kindergartener can tell if there is work
being done or if the effort is wasted because that wall never moved.
The energy is expelled and nothing changes.
As stated earlier, the first law of thermodynamics states that
energy cannot be created or destroyed. It always stays constant.
When heat is the form of energy students can see and feel what
happens to that energy when it is used. More importantly, if
students can grasp this concept of energy, even though they may not
be able to see energy with their eyes but just what happens in terms
of work. The second law of thermodynamics states that although
energy does not change, it can be wasted. Although the
word “thermodynamics” is a mouthful for a young child, the idea of
energy wasted can prime a child to understand the importance of
conservation.
Activity Plan: Introduction to Energy and Heat
Content Objective:
The students will predict how they will cause a plastic bag to rise
using a hair dryer. The students will observe what happens when the
bag rises.
Language Objective:
The students will orally predict what how they will cause the
plastic bag to rise. The students will report their observations
when the bag rises.
Materials:
Hairdryer
Flimsy plastic bag used for vegetables
Chart Paper
Markers
Introduction: Begin by asking the students what they know about
energy. A graphic organizer such as a KWL chart is useful during
this portion of the lesson because is can be added to during the
unit as the students gain more understanding about the topic. As the
students generate ideas explain to the students that energy is in
them and everything around them.
Procedure: In a small group, discuss with the students how they
think they will get the bag to rise. Stress that they have to make
the bag rise without blowing the bag with the hairdryer. The
hairdryer must be off and the bag must rise off the hairdryer.
Record a few predictions on a large piece of chart paper then
demonstrate the experiment. Wrap the plastic bag loosely around the
mouth of the hairdryer, and then wrap tape around that. Do not tape
the bag to the hairdryer. Holding the bag where you taped it, turn
on the hairdryer for a few seconds, just enough to inflate the bag.
When you turn off the dryer, let the bag go. As the bag rises, ask
the students to tell you what they think is happening.
Explanation: Hot air that is rising is doing work and that work uses
up the heat energy that makes the hot air hot. The further up the
heat rises, the more it has worked, and the less energy is in it.
Without energy the air turns cold and the bag falls.
After this lesson is taught, the students should have a general
understanding that heat is energy and this can be applied to an
engine. The students can use what they know about energy to observe
a coffee cup Stirling engine.
Activity Plan: Coffee Cup Stirling Engine
Content Objective:
The students will gain an understanding of engines and fuel by
observing a Stirling Engine.
Language Objective:
The students will discuss observations as they examine a coffee cup
Stirling engine.
Materials:
Markers
Chart Paper
Coffee Cup Stirling Engine, From the American Stirling Company.
http://www.stirlingengine.com/ecommerce ... duct_id=21
Procedure: Ask the students to review what they know about energy.
Then ask them to tell you what they know about fuel. Discuss the
engine in a car and have the students look under the hood of a car
in the parking lot. Point out the engine, and discuss how they get a
car to move, guiding the conversation towards having to put gas in a
car and then turn the key to make it go. Have the students become
familiar with the idea of a need for fuel. Since the students cannot
see directly in the engine in the car, use the coffee cup Stirling
engine to show them how the engine works. Place the engine on a hot
cup of coffee and have the students observe the engine. Encourage
them to use vocabulary such as energy, heat, piston, and engine.
Explanation: The heat from the coffee causes the piston in the
engine to move, thus causing the propeller to move. This
demonstration will allow students to see how fuel is needed to make
an engine work, and since food is used to make it work it will allow
for students to easily transfer this concept to the nutrition
portion of the lesson.
Other activities for introducing energy: On an overhead, use a clear
plate to drop food coloring in. Use cold water and hot water to drop
the coloring into. The food coloring should disperse faster in the
hot water showing that heat is energy; it makes things move faster.
Also, have the students observe a candle and a match burn to
investigate the idea that heat needs fuel in order to create work.
The teacher should have a candle already lit for the students to
observe. Try to use a candle with a thick wick so they can really
watch what the flame looks like. Ask the students to describe what
they see. Ask them what they think is happening, why the flame is
still lit, why doesnÂ’t it just extinguish after a period of time.
Then light a match and ask the students to tell you what is
happening with this flame and why it does extinguish after a period
of time. Explain to the students that fuel is needed in both cases
to keep the flames going. Also ask the students what happens when
the match is extinguished. When the burnt match is cooled, ask the
students to touch the waste the match makes and ask them what they
think happens to that waste.
2) The Body as an Engine and Responsible Choices About Our Bodies
Goals:
1. The students will explore the idea of a need for fuel for the
human body as they learn about different kinds of food and how they
affect the body.
2. The students will apply the idea of food converted to energy then
to waste
Background Information
Anyone who has ever interacted with a kindergarten-age student knows
very well that kindergarteners are energetic, very energetic.
Kindergarteners need energy do to what they do all day; run, jump,
play, learn, draw and even sleep. If they donÂ’t eat, they wonÂ’t have
that energy. Although kindergarten children may not realize their
need for energy to do all that they do, kindergarteners are vaguely
conscious of their need for food. When they are hungry, they feel
tired and they eat. Most children at this age can express this need
for food to someone, so they understand they need fuel.
This idea of a need for fuel for our bodies can be outlined to a
child as young as kindergarten. These children know they have to
eat; they can name their favorite food and can, with disgust, name
the foods that they dislike. If you take a random poll of favorite
foods of kindergarteners, chances are you will get a list of high
fat, high sugar foods. I doubt you will get a child who will, with
enthusiasm express his love for wax beans or asparagus. However
typical this list of favorite high fat, high sugar foods is, it is
still dangerous. Children do not seem to be making healthy choices
about the foods they put in their bodies.
There is currently an epidemic of childhood obesity in the United
States today. Thirty percent of American children are overweight or
at risk for being overweight according to a recent publication in
the Journal of American Medicine. Children are unaware of the
benefits of healthy food choices on their bodies and in some cases
unaware of what those choices are. For example, according to the
Dole 5 A Day website, fewer then 15% of elementary children eat the
recommended 5 or more servings of fruit and vegetables a day, and a
quarter of those “vegetables” they do eat are French fries which are
very low in nutrients and very high in fat.
An awareness of the process our bodies go through when we eat can
help a kindergartener think about what they eat. When we put a piece
of food that is low in sugar and fat but high in protein, the energy
lasts longer and we are less likely to feel hungry sooner.
As with engines, our bodies also have an input/output system for
energy. We consume fuel, our bodies convert it to energy and our
muscles produce work. Some foods are burned more efficiently in our
bodies to produce optimal work. There are three kinds of biological
work; the work the muscles do to show movement, osmotic work, which
is the work the kidneys do to make urea from the blood into urine,
and synthetic work which develops large molecules from smaller ones.
(Goldstein & Goldstein, 277)
The fuel that the body uses is called carbohydrates, fats and
proteins. Most commonly the body uses the carbohydrates or glucose
mixed with oxygen during exercise to produce energy. However during
long exercise sessions, the body will use fat. Proteins are used
during starvation to give the body energy. Tests can be performed to
show how efficiently the body uses these three kinds of fuel,
however they really cannot be practically applied in the
kindergarten classroom.
Throughout this unit, children will be introduced to food groups,
and will be required to look critically at what kinds of food they
put in their bodies. Grains, vegetables and fruits will be closely
examined because this is where most carbohydrates and glucose comes
from. Fatty foods will also be examined to show the adverse effects
of those foods on the bodies.
Activity Plan: Burn a Peanut
Content Objective:
The students will become familiar with the idea that food has
caloric value.
The students will be introduced to the idea that food can be
converted to energy.
Language Objective:
The students will discuss observations when they burn the peanut.
The students will generate ideas as to what are better foods for
them to eat.
Materials:
Fresh peanuts
Ring stand with a test tube holder with water in it
Wire
Matches
Pie pan
Procedure: Ask the students to discuss what happened with the
Stirling engine when it was placed over a cup of coffee. Tell them
that food is fuel for their bodies. Show them the peanut and ask
them what the peanut does for their bodies. Then ask them how they
can get the water to boil using the materials mentioned above. Set
up the test tube so it is over the peanut that is resting on a wire
under the test tube. Set the peanut on fire and have the students
observe what happens. It should burn for a few minutes allowing the
water to boil in the test tube. Guide the students in a discussion
about how the food is fuel for their bodies and what responsible
food choices are. Have the students think about what foods will burn
for a long time and what foods will burn for a shorter amount of
time. Relate that concept to energy.
Explanation: Heat from the burning peanut is combustion from the
chemical energy stored in the peanut. Your body does the same sort
of thing. It converts the energy in the peanut into energy to keep
your body running.
Other activities for introducing food energy (nutrition): Have
students decide what are nutritious food by creating graphic
organizers depicting what are good foods to keep their bodies
(engines) healthy, and what foods are poor choices for their bodies.
3) Environmental Responsibilities and Alternate Forms of Energy
Goals:
@OL:1. The students will briefly explore fossil fuels (oil and coal)
and the engines that burn them to gain an understanding of where
most of the United States energy and waste come from.
2. The students will explore alternative energy and compare that
with fossil fuels to determine what would be a more responsible
choice for energy.
Background Information
After an understanding of food as chemical energy, student can then
begin to think about waste (naturally!). Most children understand
that food after it is eaten is converted to waste, but now they know
that food is changed into chemical energy and then to waste. This
idea can now be transferred to the environment.
The use and consumption of fossil fuels has a detrimental effect on
the environment and on humans. From the collection phase, through
the transport and finally the combustion phase, these fuels can
negatively impact the world around us. When fossil fuels are
collected there is a risk of injury to humans, as well as leaks to
the environment. When fuels are transported there is also a risk for
spill, such as the catastrophic spill of the Exxon Valdez and also
by-products that can leak toxins. When fossil fuels are burned, they
release chemicals and debris into the air that can lead to
environmental decay and possibly global warming. While this concept
is relatively heavy for a kindergarteners cognitive process, seeing
what could happen to a small environment can contextualize the idea
of pollution and a need for energy conservation
As stated earlier, when fossil fuels are burned, they have an
adverse effect on the environment. Most car engines, (including
Hybrid cars) run on a internal combustion engine which requires
fossil fuels to operate. The combustion of those fuels emits a
variety of pollutants into the environment, altering the
environment. These pollutants also pose a variety of health problems
for humans.
Every child is aware of the sun. They can feel and see what the sun
does, but donÂ’t really think about how important the sun is to our
survival. The foods we eat are dependent on the sun. By using solar
energy and through photosynthesis the energy is used to make that
plant grow. Through many chemical processes, that plant become food
which becomes energy for us, all the while causing no harmful
effects on the environment. All organisms depend on the sunÂ’s energy
and heat.
Heating water for use in the home is a major contributor to energy
consumption. By using the sun energy to heat water, we create a free
and clean way to gain hot water. Home solar water heaters can be
used in houses. Collectors can be mounted on roofs to trap the sunÂ’s
heat. Through a series of pipes it can be transported to a well-
insulated water heater where it is stored for later use. Although
there are many other forms of renewable energy, the idea of the sun
as a heater can be contextualized for young students.
Activity Plan: Pollution in a Micro-system: Terrarium
Content Objective:
The students will be introduced to the idea of pollution.
The students will become familiar with a variety of pollutants.
Language Objective:
The students will discuss the effects of pollution on the micro-
system and then that effect on the environment.
Material:
A developed terrarium (a system of soil, water, and plants that can
sustain life without human interference.)
The burned peanut
A piece of coal
Matches
Procedure: Discuss with the students the terrarium, and how it is
able to sustain life. Relate this idea and guide this discussion
towards the environment. Then show the students the burned peanut
and the piece of coal, (charcoal is sufficient). Ask the students
what they think will happen when the piece of coal is placed in the
terrarium and set on fire. Use a small piece of charcoal and light
it inside the terrarium. Allow it to burn for a small amount of
time, and then extinguish it. Close up the terrarium then observe
the environment over the next few days. Discuss with the students
what happens to the environment.
Explanation: Use of fossil fuels entails some environmental
degradation and also a risk to people. By burning the coal in the
terrarium, it has caused the environment to die.
Activity Plan: Warming water with the sun
Content Objective:
The students will be introduced to the sunÂ’s energy.
The students will heat water with the sunÂ’s energy.
Language Objective:
The students will discuss the sunÂ’s energy as they heat water with
the sun.
Materials:
A shallow black container
A thermometer
Water
Chart paper
Markers
Procedure: Ask the children how they heat water when they want warm
water. Ask them discuss this further and explain to them that they
are going to heat the water using just the container and the sun.
Ask them to tell you how they think this can be done. Then take the
container to a sunny spot in the room, or outside and take a
baseline temperature. Record the temperature of the container on a
piece of chart paper and leave the container alone. Return to the
container a few hours later, and take the temperature of both
containers again. Discuss the results with the class.
Explanation: The sunÂ’s energy has heat the water in the container
without using a fossil fuel or expelling any waste. It was a clean
form of energy that did work (heating the water) and it is
completely renewable.
Responsibility and the Environment
Using what they have learned about the need for energy and
alternative forms of energy the students will create a murals of two
environments: one being an environment where the choice was made to
use fossil fuels and engines that create pollution and one of an
environment where clean, renewable energy forms were used to create
a clean, healthy environment.
Unit Conclusion
With the students, read The Lorax and discuss with students what
happened to the environment in the story and how they could have
conserved energy and saved their world.
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Bibliography
Teacher Resources
Berman, Christine, & Jackie Fromer. Teaching Children About Food: A
Teaching and Activities Guide. California: Bull Publishing Company,
1991.
Fay, James A. & Dan S. Golomb. Energy and the Environment. . New
York, NY: Oxford University Press, 2002.
Fenn, J.B. Engines, Energy, and Entropy. New York: W.H. Freeman and
Company, 1982.
Goldstein, I., & Goldstein, M. The Refrigerator and the Universe.
Cambridge Massachusetts: Harvard University Press, 1993.
Ogden CL, Flegal KM, Carroll MD, Johnson CL. Prevalence and trends
in overweight among US children and adolescents, 1999-2000. Journal
of the American Medical Association. 2002;288:1728-1732
Richard-Amato, Patricia A. Making It Happen: From Interactive to
Participatory Language Teaching, Theory and Practice. White Plains,
NY: Pearson Education, Inc., 2003.
ChildrenÂ’s Books
Allcroft, Britt. Thomas that the Magic Railroad: Little Engines Can
Do Big Things. New York: Random House ChildrenÂ’s Books, 2002.
- Thomas is a popular train engine and appears in many books besides
this one. This is an excellent book to use when introducing other
engines.
Atkins, Jeannine. Aani and The Tree Huggers. New York, NY: Lee & Low
Books, 1995.
- Anni is a girl from India who throughout this story learns the
importance of trees.
Berenstain, Stan and Jan Berenstain. The Berenstain BearsÂ’ Big Book
of Science and Nature. NY: Random House, 1997.
- This book centers around the Berenstain Bears as they learn about
science and nature.
Berger, M. Energy From the Sun. LetÂ’s-Read-and-Find-Out Science
Books, NY: Harper and Row, 1976.
- Although the information and vocabulary in this book may be too
advanced for kindergarteners, the pictures are good and can offer
some research for older students if this unit is adapted for them.
Bingham, Caroline. The Big Book of Things That Go. New York, NY:
Dorling Kindersley Publishing Inc. 1994.
- There are over 125 color photographs of vehicles that most
kindergarteners will find especially stimulating. This book can be
used to show how most vehicles have engines.
Bourgeois, Paulette, Catherine Ross & Susan Wallace. The Amazing
Milk Book. NJ: Pearson Addison Wesley, 1991.
- This book contains activities for teachers and parents to help
teach the importance of dairy in our lives. It also explains how
milk gets from a cow to our tables.
Bruce, Lisa. Engines, Engines. London: Bloomsbury, 2000.
- A colorful counting book that uses trains to teach counting and
introduces students to cultural highlights of India. A good book for
pre-school to kindergarten students.
Challoner, Jack. Energy. New York, NY: Dorling Kindersley Publishing
Inc., 2002.
- This book can introduce a second or third grader to many ideas
about energy. With adult assistance they can explore and experiment
and answer questions such as why matches burn, why recycling makes
the most of energy, how waterwheels work, how efficient light bulbs
save electricity, and how geothermal energy creates hot water.
Pictures and diagrams are good for kindergarten level but more
useful if this unit is adapted for higher grades.
Cherry, L. The Great Kapok Tree. San Diego, NY, London: Harcourt
Brace and Company, 1990.
- This is a story about a man who tries to chop down a tree in the
Amazon rainforest. While the man sleeps, animals of the tree and the
forest whisper to him the importance of trees in their habitat. This
story could be used to teach the students about conservation.
Dineen, Jaqueline. Energy From Sun, Wind and Tide. Englewood,
Colorado: Teacher Ideas Press, 1996.
- This book teaches about three renewable energy sources with
pictures that could be a useful for a teacher to help demonstrate
those energy sources. The reading level is above kindergarten but
can still be used for itÂ’s pictures.
Dr. Seuss. The Lorax. NY: Random House, 1971.
- The Lorax is a story about a factory that comes to town and mass
produces Thneeds, at the expense of the environment. This books show
what can happen if the environment if it is stripped of itÂ’s natural
resources (in a Dr. Seuss kind of way!)
Fardon, John. What Happens WhenÂ…? New York, Ny: Scholastic Inc.,
1996.
- Every two pages on this book answers a questions like, “what
happens when you mail a letter or order a pizza. This book is
included because it contains information about how food is grown,
how electricity works and what happens to our garbage.
Gibbons, G. Recycle! A Handbook for Kids. Boston, New York, Toronto:
Little, Brown and Co, 1996.
- Designed to give children good ideas for recycling and
responsibility, this book can also provide good ideas for teachers
to create a recycling program with their students.
Hope Fine, Edith. Under the Lemon Moon. New York, NY: Lee & Low
Books, 1996.
- A Mexican girl learns that someone has been stealing lemons from
her lemon tree. While searching for the culprit, she learns that
trees provide us with food and that needs to shared with everyone.
This is a good book to discuss nutrition, plants, and responsibility
with the students.
Lafferty, Peter. Force and Motion. New York, NY: Dorling Kindersley
Publishing Inc. 2000.
- More textbook like, this book offers many color photographs and
diagrams that can appeal to a kindergarten student with the
assistance of an adult. A better book for higher grades of the unit
is adapted so.
Nikola-Lisa, W. Summer Sun RisinÂ’. New York, NY: Lee & Low Books,
2002.
- This book shows a day on a farm as the reader follows an African ñ
American boy throughout his day. This book illustrates the important
of the sun and itÂ’s role in everything we do.
McGuire, Richard. Night Becomes Day. New York, NY : Penguin USA,
1994.
- This book tells the reader about the cycle of the sun and the
moon. It is a good book to show how the sun rotates everyday and is
an important presence in our lives.
Parker, Steve. Brain Surgery for Beginners and Other Major
Operations for Minors. New York, NY: Scholastic Inc, 1993.
- A human anatomy book that has great pictures and illustrations of
the functions of the human body and the role the brain plays. The
pictures in this book are appropriate for kindergarten, and older
students can still be interested in itÂ’s contents.
Piper, Watty. The Little Engine That Could. New York, NY: Grosset &
Dunlap, 1976.
- A classic story about how perseverance can overcome any obstacle.
The Little Engine overcame a big challenge and managed to triumph!
This is also another good story to show engines on trains.
Scarry, Richard Cars and Trucks and Things That Go. New York, NY:
Golden Books. 1974.
- This book can serve as a good vocabulary builder for both English
Language Learners and those who are fluent in English. This book has
many illustrations that a kindergartener can independently explore.
Strickland, Paul. All About Special Engines. North America: Gareth
Stevens, 1990.
- This book is another good vocabulary builder as it shows different
trucks that serve special function like a cement mixer or a garbage
truck.
Walker, Richard (2003) Human Body Encyclopedia. Dorling Kindersley
Publishing Inc. New York, NY
- This reference book for kindergartners introduces human biology in
a way that is accessible to an early reader.
Williams, Brian, and Brenda Williams. The Random House Book of 1001
Wonders Of Science. London: Grisewood & Dempsey Ltd. 1990.
- Although this book is written for an older audience, it still has
concise and brief paragraphs that teacher can paraphrase or read to
the students to clarify ideas or concept student may have about
engines, energy or the human body.
Useful Websites
http://beakman.bonus.com/
- This site is child friendly for research and experiments
- The Dole company website for nutritional health. Has a table for
nutritional value for vegetables and fruits. Tips for eating
vegetables and fruits.
- Website that explains how anything works in simple terms. Very
easy to use, just type in what you want to know, and in information
is presented in two or three pages with animations and diagrams.
Materials for Classroom Use
MM-1 Coffee Cup Stirling Engine. 139.00 From the American Stirling
Company.
http://www.stirlingengine.com/ecommerce ... duct_id=21
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Appendix: Standards
This unit addresses New Haven Public Schools District K-4 Science
Curriculum Standards:
1.0 Scientific Standard: Students will develop abilities necessary
to conduct scientific inquiry, including posing a question, stating
a hypothesis, developing an investigation, observing and documenting
the process and recording and determining the results.
In addition this unit addresses performance standards 1.1a, 1.1b,
1.1e, 1.1f
2.0 Physical Science: Students will develop an understanding of
properties of objects and matter, position, motion and forces of
objects including light, heat, electricity, and the transfer and
conservation of energy.
In addition, this unit addresses performance standards 2.1a, 2.1b,
2.3c,2.3d,
3.0 Life Science: Students will develop an understanding of the
characteristics of organisms, life cycles of organisms, reproduction
and heredity, populations and ecosystems, organisms and their
environment and the diversity, interaction and interdependence of
organisms.
In addition, this unit addresses performance standards 3.1a, 3.1c,
3.1d, 3.3a, 3.3b,
4.0 Earth Science: Students will develop an understanding of the
structures, properties and dynamic processes of the earth, the solar
system, the universe and the galaxy; they will be familiar with the
origins, evolution, movements and interaction of these systems.
In addition, this unit addresses performance standards 4.1a, 4.1d,
4.2a, 4.2b, 4.3c, 4.3c
5.0 Technological Science: Students will develop abilities necessary
to distinguish between naturally occurring objects and those of
human design, and they will develop an understanding of the roles of
science and technology in contemporary society.
In addition, this unit address performance standards 5.1a, 5.1b,
5.1h, 5.2c, 5.2d, 5.2c, 5.3a, 5.3a
6.0 Ecology: Students will develop an understanding of personal and
community health, of the characteristics of changing populations, of
the ecology of and uses of natural resources, of changes in
environments, and of the uses of science and technology in
addressing present-day local and global challenges.
In addition, this unit addresses performance standards 6.1a, 6.1c,
6.1d, 6.2b, 6..3a, 6.3b, 6.4c, 6.4d
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Are there any articles about using Stirling engines in elementary school classrooms? Yes!
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Brent Van Arsdell
American Stirling Company
Brent Van Arsdell
American Stirling Company