Thank you to Ms. Kinville's 4th grade class at the School of Engineering and Arts for inviting me into their classroom this morning. The students were wondering how much it cost to operate the lights in their classroom and how much is saved by turning off the lights.
We talked about the fluorescent light bulbs in their room and the amount of energy each bulb uses. The students were able to calculate the wattage into kilowatts and then into kilowatt hours. We talked about the per kilowatt hour amount the district is charged and also discussed how this can vary based on the demand charges specific to the building. Once the students came up with the amount for one bulb, they then multiplied by the total number of bulbs in the room. The calculations continued as they figured out the cost for their classroom lights to run for one hour, then six hours per day and then for the entire school year.
Next we looked at three types of light bulbs: incandescent, CFL and LED. The students were able to compare the different wattage of the bulbs anywhere from a 100 watt incandescent down to an 8 watt LED. The fourth graders asked many great questions and we were able to talk about several different energy-related topics including alternative energy sources, vampire energy and ways to be efficient with energy use both at home and school.
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| Ms. Kinville and her awesome 4th graders at SEA. |
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