Solar Lesson Plan

LESSON PLAN TEMPLATE
Your Name: Gerald Schnieder

Title of Lesson: Solar Structure
Grade: 7th
STANDARDS
6-8.WHST.4 Produce clear and coherent writing in which the development, organization, and
style are appropriate to task, purpose, and audience.
Science Strand 3: Science in Personal and Social Perspectives.
-Concept 2: Science and Technology in Society.
-PO3: Design and construct a solution to an identified need or problem using simple
classroom materials.
LESSON SUMMARY/OVERVIEW
This lesson will allow students to discover for themselves how a solar production system,
comprised of solar panels and the ancillary gear, can be incorporated into an urban environment.
Students will add solar panels to a house, after determining which orientation will be most
effective, and how many panels need to be installed. By understanding how a solar energy
system works and is installed, they will be better informed when making future decisions and be
able to provide advice to others.
OBJECTIVES
Students will be able to explain why solar panels are positioned the way they are on roof tops.
Students will be able to describe other areas in a community they have seen, or think solar
installations could be placed.
ASSESSMENT/EVALUATION
Students projects will be evaluated for quality of construction and placement/arrangement of
solar panels. Groups will write an individual summary of their house which includes the energy
usage of the house, and system output from the solar panel array.
PREREQUISITE KNOWLEDGE
Students will need to know how solar panel output is determined (Day Two lesson),
-Prebuilt gingerbread houses
-Bendable pipe-cleaner like wire
-Glue
-Science Journal
MATERIALS
-Gram crackers
-Misc. Lego blocks
-Calculator
-Project summary exit ticket
VOCABULARY/KEY WORDS
Solar Panel - a panel designed to absorb the sun's rays as a source of energy for generating
electricity or heating.
Orientation - the determination of the relative position of something or someone.
Power draw - the amount of energy needed to run an object or system.
System Output total amount of energy produced by a system.
Wattage (Watts) - a measure of electrical power expressed in watts.

TEACHING PROCEDURES
-Teacher will introduce lesson and explain to students what is to be expected during the class
period by first presenting the realia to be used during the lesson.
-Today, each group will receive a gingerbread house, gram crackers which will be used as solar
panels, Lego blocks to be used to represent transformers and junction boxes, and pipe cleaners to
represent wiring bundles along with your project summary exit ticket.
-Using these basic building blocks, you will construct a solar panel installation on your house
which meets the electrical needs of the family you are assigned.
-Teacher will then explain the procedure for creating their sola panel installation.
-As we learned on day two, the amount of panels and their orientation is key to meeting the
power draw of your house. On your project summary, fill out the sections which describe the
location and size of your house and the number of people who live in it which will be provided
to you.
-Next, utilize the Solarcity website to determine your power draw, and what your system output
needs to be in watts.
-After you have completed these steps, you will use the basic materials to actually build your
solar panel installation.
-The teacher will then ask for volunteers to review the steps of the lesson.
-The teacher will then break students up into groups and distribute materials to the groups, giving
each group a different power draw amount for each individual house. This will ensure the
students have to create a unique solution for their particular model.
-Giving the students 20 minutes to complete their project, the teacher will circulate around the
room, assisting and providing guiding questions when necessary.
-After the students have completed their installations, the teacher instructs them to complete their
project summary worksheets, notating the specs of their house and solar panel system, and a
reflection on how and why they installed their system the way they did.
-Finally, the teacher holds a group discussion reviewing some of the students projects and their
reasoning behind their solution.
-I see a lot of well-designed solar panel installations as I look around the room. From what I
have seen, everyone has been able to meet the demands of the home they were given
successfully.
-Who would like to share their project with the class?
-After allowing students time to review their work, the teacher will wrap up the lesson by
collecting the project summary exit tickets and reviewing why solar energy is important, and
how communities can incorporate solar energy.
-As we learned during day one, fossil fuels are a nonrenewable resource which we are currently
dependent on as a society. As we have been learning, solar energy is a viable alternative,
especially in our location.
-I would like you to all consider how we as a community could incorporate solar power to offset
our need or fossil fuels. Think in either small scale, like individual streetlights, or lage scale
projects. Take a moment to discuss this with your group.
-The teacher will give the students a few minutes to discuss.
-Now write down in your science journals some of the ideas that you discussed.
-End of lesson
RESOURCES
Go Solar with SolarCity! Discover Solar Power Energy Systems. (n.d.). Retrieved April 1, 2015,
from http://www.solarcity.com/
WAYS OF THINKING CONNECTION
This lesson plan includes system and futures thinking. It includes systems thinking because the
students have to think about all the steps necessary to install a solar energy production system on
a residential home. It also includes futures thinking because students are asked to think about
how solar energy can be utilized to offset fossil fuel usage in their community, and by drawing
information learned during day one students will reflect on why using renewable energy sources
are a better option to guarantee that future generations have the same opportunities that we have.
Project Summary Solar Panel Installation:

Name: ____________________________
Residence Specifications:
Location of structure: ________________________________
Date: __________________
Number of bedrooms: _____________

Number of occupants: _____________
Solarcity Website:
Utilize the resource www.solarcity.com to determine the power needs of your residence, and
what type of solar system you will need to meet those demands.
Power Draw: ______________ (watts)
Number of panels needed: ______________
Total system output: ____________ (watts)
Panel Layout:
In the space below, draw a rough layout of how the panels will be laid out on your house, noting
the orientation to the sun that they will be placed. Remember, panels should face primarily south
towards the sun or east/west if necessary.
Reflection:
Provide a brief but detailed description of your solar panel system, noting the specs and your
reasoning behind the layout of your system.
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LESSON PLAN TEMPLATE

Your Name: Gerald Schnieder

Wattage (Watts) - a measure of electrical power expressed in watts.

Project Summary Solar Panel Installation:

Number of bedrooms: _____________

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