Wind Energy Curricula and Teaching Materials
This is a list of wind energy curricula and teaching materials for elementary, middle school, and high school students, in alphabetical order by the producing agency's name.
4-H Group Wind Curriculum
Developed The Power of the Wind, which consists of one Youth Guide and one Facilitator's Guide. The activities involve young people in the engineering design process as they learn about the wind and its uses. The site also offers videos.
Boise State University
Compiled a list of resources for educators, including lesson plans created using the Idaho State and Common Core Standards.
California Energy Commission
Developed a set of educational materials called "Energy Quest" that includes the following:
Danish Wind Industry Association
Produced "Wind with Miller," a resource for young students that provides information in short bits, uses interactive tools (calculators, sliding scales, drop-down lists), and presents information with colorful, moving diagrams. Older students can learn about wind energy careers and education opportunities specific to the Danish wind industry.
Educators for the Environment
Produced an online handbook, Energy for Keeps, that includes a wind energy section.
The Futures Channel
Produced The Wind Business, a video about the Maple Ridge Wind Farm in New York. The video introduces students to three engineers who use everything from algebra to physics and problem solving to statistics to provide clean, renewable energy. It is accompanied by a classroom activity.
GreenLearning Canada
Provides background information on wind, hands-on learning activities, teacher materials, resources, and links.
Idaho National Laboratory
Produced Energy for Educators, a site that includes lesson plans for different levels.
KidWind Project
Provides lessons and activities for middle-level students. Find background material, lessons and experiments, PowerPoint lectures, and more. The KidWind organization develops these materials on an ongoing basis, tying the curricula to standard testing protocols.
Building out from the curricula developed by KidWInd, WindWise takes a larger modular approach to wind energy education focused primarily for secondary students. The curricula modules cover many different aspects from resource assessment to environmental impacts.
Laurentian Environmental Learning Center
Developed curriculum for students utilizing a partnership with the Minnesota Department of Commerce, Great River Energy, and Minnesota Power. Curriculum contains an introduction to energy, along with wind energy activities.
Mortenson Construction
Developed a children's book on wind power to encourage interest in construction and in science. The website also offers coloring pages, a vocabulary quiz, crossword puzzles, word searches, and flash cards.
National Energy Education Development Project
Provides K-12 wind curriculum. Lessons are correlated to state standards and include hands-on curriculum, interdisciplinary activities, and data-based lessons.
National Renewable Energy Laboratory
Offers student resources on wind energy.
Oklahoma Wind Power Initiative
Provides a wind energy tutorial and materials for educators and students.
PBS
Offers wind curricula lesson plans and "Blowin' in the Wind," a SciGirls episode.
Texas State Energy Conservation Office
Offers renewable energy lesson plans.
University of Northern Iowa
Offers wind kits, propeller kits, and wind meters for middle-school kids.
U.S. Department of Energy
EERE's Energy Education and Workforce Development website provides a list of K-12 lesson plans for energy efficiency and renewable energy in general. You may find some additional wind energy resources that aren't listed here.
U.S. Energy Information Agency
Produced Energy Kids, a website that provides information and classroom activities on all energy technologies, including wind energy, for kids. The site includes an Energy Information Resources database for teachers.