Subject taught
- Biology
- Chemistry
- Technology

Link
https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/energy/reference/renewable-energy/

Type of Product
- Videos
- Web Site/Portal

Language Skills Developed
- Interaction
- Listening
- Reading
- Speaking

Transferable/Scientific Skills Developed
• Knowing the main difference between renewable and non-renewable resources. • Explaining how Solar, wind, hydroelectric, biomass, and geothermal power can produce energy without the planet-warming effects of fossil fuels. • Knowing the inner structure of the earth as the source of non-renewable energies. • Knowing the relationship between the complex structure of the earth-system and the production of renewable energies.

Description
General aims
o To make students aware that our planet is based on a fragile equilibrium depending on our life choices.
o To let the students aware that each power resource has different impact on the planet.
o To improve student comprehension that the behaviour of the human being should preserve this equilibrium.
Linguistic aims
o To expand their vocabulary in the field related to earth science and ecological problems.
o To practice the impersonal language to speculate about scientific topics.
o To improve their listening skills.
o To increase their expertise to get useful information from a web site or a video.
Subject specific aims
o Earth science: knowing the main features of the earth system and the relationship with the source of renewable and non-renewable energy.
o Chemistry: to show some interesting simple inorganic and organic molecules, the greenhouse gases, in global warming. To show the chemical relationship between the greenhouse gases and some interesting organic molecules.
Target group age: 15-16
Level of competence in English: (CEFR) B1
Time required to use the resource with the students: 3 hours
How to use it
After watching the videos and reading the web site, the teacher will give the students some key-words and some questions about the subject to promote discussion with a focus on greenhouse gases and effects of global warming.
In a second time the teacher will make the students understand the chemical connection between renewable energies and non -renewable energies based on the carbon footprint.
Possible difficulties for the students.
Let the student know that all is about the law of conservation of energy.
To understand the relationship between the combustion of non-renewable energies and the production of carbon dioxide.
Let them understand the balance between the daily need of energy and the long-term effect of global warming.
To let them conscious that our life style is still possible because a great part of the human beings is still living without any energy access, but this is no longer possible.

Comments
Strength The student could develop their personal idea about the conscious use of energy and the consequence of their future choices based on scientific evidences. Weakness The scientific concept related to renewable energies can be complex even though the students don’t have much chemical and physical competences. They might find boring the subject before their understanding of the main connection between their life style and the topic. Pedagogical value The scientific concept related to renewable energies can be complex or boring, but students can get the solid basis to build an ecological idea of the future from that. This can be achieved through collaborative learning and peer assisted learning in which each component of the group or the couple could compare his “energy life style” between each other.

Related Video Lessons

Renewable Energies: Part 1

Renewable Energies: Part 2