Energy All Around

Contributor
Buffy Silverman Epic!
Type Category
Instructional Materials
Types
Informative Text
Note
This resource, vetted by NSTA curators, is provided to teachers along with suggested modifications to make it more in line with the vision of the NGSS. While not considered to be "fully aligned," the resources and expert recommendations provide teachers with concrete examples and expert guidance using the EQuIP rubric to adapted existing resources. Read more here.

Reviews

Description

The book, Energy All Around, introduces students to the concept of energy,  describes some of the many forms energy can take and gives examples of how energy can be transferred and transformed. It is available to educators as a free ebook from Epic or in print.

Intended Audience

- none -
Educational Level
  • Grade 5
  • Grade 4
  • Grade 3
  • Upper Elementary
Language
English
Access Restrictions

Free access - The right to view and/or download material without financial, registration, or excessive advertising barriers.

Performance Expectations

4-ESS3-1 Obtain and combine information to describe that energy and fuels are derived from natural resources and their uses affect the environment.

Clarification Statement: Examples of renewable energy resources could include wind energy, water behind dams, and sunlight; non-renewable energy resources are fossil fuels and fissile materials. Examples of environmental effects could include loss of habitat due to dams, loss of habitat due to surface mining, and air pollution from burning of fossil fuels.

Assessment Boundary: none

This resource appears to be designed to build towards this performance expectation, though the resource developer has not explicitly stated so.

Comments about Including the Performance Expectation
This book provides an overview of some major energy sources. In order to meet this performance expectation, students will need to delve further into the environmental impacts of energy sources. This might be done jigsaw style, using other books from getepic.com and/or the resource links at the end of the book.

Science and Engineering Practices

This resource appears to be designed to build towards this science and engineering practice, though the resource developer has not explicitly stated so.

Comments about Including the Science and Engineering Practice
As they read this book, students will be able to explain the phenomena of energy and energy transfer and how scientists and engineers have been able to design various ways to make energy more accessible (solar panels, wind turbines, hydropower, fossil fuels).

Disciplinary Core Ideas

This resource appears to be designed to build towards this disciplinary core idea, though the resource developer has not explicitly stated so.

Comments about Including the Disciplinary Core Idea
Natural sources included in the book include renewables such as solar and wind and nonrenewable fossil fuels. Students will need to explore the environmental impacts by combining information from other resources in order to fully address this disciplinary core idea.

Crosscutting Concepts

This resource appears to be designed to build towards this crosscutting concept, though the resource developer has not explicitly stated so.

Comments about Including the Crosscutting Concept
Students will be able to analyze a variety of systems that transfer energy, including plants (photosynthesis), solar panels, and fossil fuels.

Resource Quality

  • Alignment to the Dimensions of the NGSS: This resource can be used to help students make sense of the phenomenon of energy transfer and the technologies we have developed to make energy more usable. As students explore each system, they deepen their understanding of the disciplinary core ideas and crosscutting concepts related to energy. The book incorporates Earth, physical, and life science concepts as they relate to energy. There is strong alignment to CCSS ELA as students will be reading and discussing informational text. The publisher’s ELA connection ideas can be found here: https://app.rourkeeducationalmedia.com/application/uploads/content_attechment/9781618102287TN.pdf

  • Instructional Supports: The combined use of photographs and diagrams for each energy source helps students visualize how each system works to transfer energy. There are no specific differentiation supports, but clicking on a word pops open a dictionary definition that reads the word aloud, which is a very helpful support. Learning may be extended by using the links at the end of the book.

  • Monitoring Student Progress: There are a few questions at the end of the book that could be used for assessment, such as, “How do different objects and animals use energy?” Students could write their responses and/or share them orally. As a summative assessment, students could be asked to draw, label, and describe energy transfer in one of the systems in the book. Clicking the ??? button allows students or teachers to create quizzes based on the book that could be used formatively or summatively.

  • Quality of Technological Interactivity: The Epic! feature that reads words aloud and gives a definition is very convenient. The interactive quiz feature is also a plus. The NASA link at the end of the book has moved here: https://climatekids.nasa.gov/career-wind-energy/.