Solar 101
Teaching Kids About the Environment and Solar Energy
Simple ways to teach children about nature, recycling, water and solar energy at home, plus how a rooftop solar system becomes a living science lesson.
Simple ways to teach children about nature, recycling, water and solar energy at home, plus how a rooftop solar system becomes a living science lesson.
Many of us want to preserve the earth for future generations, but how do you teach children what that means? It can sound overwhelming, yet you do not need to explain the ozone layer to give kids a real connection with the planet. If you are spending more time at home with your children, here are practical ideas for getting the conversation going, with a closer look at solar energy at the end.
Children already love to play in the dirt, so build some learning into it. Plant a tree and watch it grow, or buy seeds for your child's favourite vegetable and let them start a garden. Show how soil and sun help plants grow, and give them chances to feel, see and smell during the process. For best results, pick easy-to-grow vegetables such as tomatoes, carrots, green beans and cucumbers.
Explain the difference between toys made of plastic, cotton and wood and where each material comes from. Have kids feel the different textures and talk about why some materials are better for the environment than others. Toys can also teach about energy: a build-it-yourself solar car kit or a renewable energy science kit that explores wind power are fun ways to start.
Parents sometimes want to shield children from frightening subjects, which is understandable. Experts often note, however, that avoiding difficult topics can hurt kids more than it helps them. Age-appropriate honesty works better.
Recycling is a daily activity every child can join. Let them sort cans, bottles and paper, and talk about what those items become. Discuss ways to cut down on the trash your family creates and how to reuse items for arts and crafts. Want to go further? Set up a worm composting bin and watch the worms recycle food waste.
Coverage of natural disasters can be scary for children, so listen to and acknowledge their fears. Floods, hurricanes and tornadoes can also be a chance to explain why certain weather events happen and how they affect the environment. Depending on their age, you can connect this to climate change and ask how they feel and what ideas they have.
Teach kids where tap water comes from and that it is not unlimited. Brushing teeth, watering plants and washing pets are all chances to talk about conserving water and to ask for their ideas.
The sun is full of energy, and solar energy is the sunlight that reaches the earth. The amount that arrives depends on location, time of day, time of year and weather. The sun has produced energy for billions of years, and people have used it for hundreds of years to cook food, keep warm and dry clothes. Today we also use it to make electricity.
Solar cells turn light from the sun into electricity. They are also called photovoltaic cells: "photo" comes from the Greek word for light and "voltaic" refers to electricity. Many solar cells are joined together to make a solar panel, and panels placed on a roof collect sunlight and turn it into power. If you have seen shiny panels on a house, that house is using solar energy, which can power anything in the home that needs electricity.
Panels are not only for houses. They power food trucks, boats, buildings, space satellites and even aircraft prototypes. They also run smaller things like calculators and the flashing signs that warn about traffic delays or closed exits.
Solar energy does not create air pollution the way burning coal and oil does. Solar panels make electricity directly from sunlight without burning fuel, which makes it a clean option.
Once your family has solar, the roof becomes a real-life lesson. Kids can watch production on a monitoring app, compare a sunny day with a cloudy one and see how much the household uses. If you are curious about going solar in the GTA, take a look at our residential solar service, the solar calculator or get in touch through our contact page.
Say that solar panels catch sunlight and turn it into electricity that powers lights and appliances. Showing a small solar toy or kit makes it concrete.
Build a solar car kit, compare how much a small solar-powered device runs in the sun versus the shade, or track your household electricity use together.
