Students will use a small wind turbine called a Firefly to understand how rotational movement can be used to convert wind power into electrical energy, which can power a load light like a light. Using the engineering design process and the scientific method, students will generate as much electricity as possible from their wind wheel designs. Get the materials to create the Firefly activity with your class with KidWind’s Firefly Wind Classpack.
The Details
Materials
- Tubing
- Pencil
- Propeller
- LED lights
- Acorn hex nuts
- Nacelle
- Screw hubs
- Generator
- Rulers
- Pencils
- Scissors
- Pencil sharpener
- 20″x20″ standard box fans
- Cardstock print outs of wind wheel templates
Next Generation Science Standards
Cross-Cutting Concepts
- Cause & Effect
- Energy & Matter
- Patterns
Disciplinary Core Ideas
- ETS1.A Defining & Delimiting Engineering Problems
- ETS1.B Developing Possible Solutions
- ETS1.C Optimizing the Design Solution
- PS2.A Forces & Motion
- PS2.B Types of Interactions
- PS3.A Definitions of Energy
- PS3.B Conservation of Energy & Energy Transfer
- PS3.C Relationship Between Energy & Forces
Learning Objectives
- Know the fundamental parts of a wind turbine
- Be able to use the engineering design process and the scientific method to isolate and adjust variables while designing and testing wind wheels
- Understand energy conversions and transfers, and how a wind turbine converts moving air into electrical energy
- Design a Wind Wheel for the Firefly wind turbine that can light up an LED