The sixth grade students’ water wheel lesson began with a short discussion about the six main types of energy. They talked about how energy could be transferred from one form to another, but can never be destroyed. The students watched a video about hydroelectric power plants and how they produce energy. For the activity, each group had two 20 oz bottles, six note cards, a strip of duct tape, a strip of masking tape, a ruler and a pair of scissors. Each group constructed a water turbine. Once the turbines were completed, each group tested their design and calculated the amount of power their model could generate.
