3 exciting project ideas to teach renewable and nonrenewable energy sources

February 6, 2024

Calling all science teachers who dread teaching renewable and nonrenewable energy sources! When I first took over teaching environmental science, I was not prepared to teach a unit on energy sources and their impacts on the environment. I had learned about energy in my college physics classes as well as some sustainability classes. It definitely was not my area of expertise since I was more of a life science person. When it came time to cover this unit, I would always dread it because it felt like a lot of content to cover without too many hands on activities.

3 exciting project ideas to teach renewable and nonrenewable energy sources

Out of desperation to cover all the content in a topic I was not all too familiar with, I turned to using projects. Projects can be a great way for students to take ownership of their learning. Students can become experts on one of the energy sources and teach the rest of the class all about it. This was the perfect solution to avoid having to teach this unit.

But the problem was that the quality of the projects was always lacking. The slideshows students put together were boring and uninteresting. The groups of students would painfully present to the class their energy resources. Students came to presentation day unprepared and unenthused. It was clear to me that students were not experts on their topic. Instead, they were showing me that they could copy down information into a crappy slideshow and read the information to the class. It was not a valuable learning experience at all.

That is when I knew I needed to be more creative when it came to having students complete projects on renewable and nonrenewable energy sources. So today I will share my top 3 favorite energy sources projects of all time. My students of all levels and ages absolutely enjoy these activities. Students always tell me these were some of their favorite and memorable projects from all of high school.

Speed Dating of Renewable and Nonrenewable Energy Sources

When I teach my energy unit in my College Prep Environmental Science classes, it always falls around Valentine’s Day. To get into the Valentine’s Day spirit, I have students complete an energy speed dating activity. I use this as an introduction to the different energy sources covered in the unit. Most students have some background knowledge on these sources so the speed dating will help give them some quick facts about each one.

To start this activity, I project an energy sources list on the board. I use a random name picker to call up one student at a time to sign up for one of the 10 energy sources. This is to ensure that students have some choice in the source they research but it also helps ensure that the energy sources are evenly dispersed amongst the students. I usually have classes of about 20-25 students so that means there are usually 2-3 students that all have the same energy source.

Students will spend the first class filling out a speed dating profile card about their energy source. If there are multiple students in the class with the same energy source, these students can work together to create their individual dating profiles. I provide students with notes that they can use to find this information or videos from Switch Energy Classroom. Students will complete their dating profile cards to use during their dates.

The next day is speed dating day. I rearranged the classroom so the desks are set up for “dates”. I keep a timer up on the board as they only have 4 minutes per date – each person will have 2 minutes to share about themselves. While one person shares about their energy source, the other person is recording information in a graphic organizer. Once the date is over and the timer goes off, one person will shift down to the next date, repeating the process.

Energy Sources Research Project and Presentations

As I mentioned before, I would have students create presentations to teach the class about an energy source they were an “expert” on. This energy sources research project never really worked and always seemed like a waste of time until I revised the project instructions.

One of my colleagues was taking a grad course and they were instructed to create a RAFT lesson plan. RAFT is an acronym (R = role, A = audience, F = format, and T = topic) that is typically used to help guide the writing process. We were talking about it one day at lunch and I had a light bulb moment. I could use this to help structure and guide the presentations to make them more realistic.

The RAFT would consist of the following: Role = energy entrepreneur, Audience = investors in a power plant, Format = competitive pitch presentations, and Topic = renewable and nonrenewable energy sources. Instead of students completing boring lecture style presentations, this RAFT would make it more real world centered and give students a perspective for their presentations.

Each group of students would sign up for one energy source. They would research the energy source and become an expert on that topic. They would be researching the source from the lens of a business person who wants to look to build a new power plant. The group of students would need to understand how the energy source is used to generate power but also examine its impact both environmentally and economically. Because they need money for this power plant, the presentation would be in the format of a pitch (think Shark Tank) as they convince the audience of investors to give them money to start this new venture.

This adds a competitive element to the presentations as each group is vying for the investor’s money. My AP Environmental Science students got very into their roles. Their presentations were some of the best I have ever had in any of my classes. They embodied their roles and truly acted as if they were pitching ideas to real investors.

Energy Sources Showdown to Compare Renewable and Nonrenewable Energy Sources

One of the biggest things I want students to take away from the energy sources unit is that there is no one perfect energy source when it comes to both the environment and the economy. Each energy source has its pros and cons. Therefore, I want students to compare and contrast renewable and nonrenewable energy sources. I want them to see both their advantages and disadvantages. This can help students make informed decisions when it comes to energy use in the real world.

To do this, I have students complete an Energy Sources Showdown debate. This is so much fun, especially if it falls around March Madness time. I divide up the class into groups, each group being assigned one of the renewable or nonrenewable energy sources. Groups will go head to head in a battle to compare the strengths and weaknesses of these energy sources.

I create a tournament-style bracket. For each round, two groups will go head to head, debating which energy source is better both environmentally and economically. After the round, the class votes for the best energy resource. This process repeats until we have declared a winner.

This is always a super engaging and fun way to compare and contrast renewable and nonrenewable energy sources. I have done this project in both college prep and AP level classes. It is always a crowd favorite. I have even seen some of the students who are the toughest to engage in schoolwork thrive with this project.