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Bar Charts and Comparing Data
This resource uses the context of the INEOS TEAM UK America's cup base in Portsmouth for students to explore the factors surrounding, using and installing solar panels on the roof of the building. It includes the modeling required to maximise the roof area that can be used for solar panels and the data anlysis that is used to understand the technology's impact and effectiveness.
The video is a good introduction to the activities as it explains the challenge INEOS UK faced when looking at sustainable energy sources for the base and how they addressed them. The resource can be split into 2 lessons.
The first lesson is maths focussed and asks the students to do calculations to work out an arrangement of solar panels (solar array) for the INEOS TEAM UK base to maximise the number of solar panels on the roof. There is a presentation, including teacher notes and worksheet answers, to help organise the activities. Student worksheet 1-1 asks students to work out the maximum number of panels that can be arranged on the roof using a scale blueprint of the base and counting the number of squares. Student worksheet 1-2 is a similar activity for more able students which includes conversion of units such as cm2 to m2 , and using measurements rather than the counting of squares to determine an area. Student worksheet 1-3 is suitable for students aged 14 to 16 and asks students to determine the best solar panels to use by comparing various factors including installation cost and the power output.
The second lesson introduces the concept of the power and energy output from solar panels so is appropriate for the physics area of the curriculum. The presentation introduces the concepts of power (kW)and energy (kWh) and how these can be calculated. The presentation, as well as giving a guide on the format for a lesson, gives plenty of examples to calculate the energy used by household items for students to try with answers in the notes. The student worksheets 2-1, 2-2, and 2-3 are differentiated and ask students to interpret data from bar charts such as how the solar panel output varies with time during the day and also with the season.
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Downloads
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Lesson 1 - base blue print 149.21 KB
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Student worksheet 1-1 465.43 KB
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Student worksheet 1-2 466.81 KB
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Student worksheet 1-3 464.19 KB
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Student worksheet 2-1 459.7 KB
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Student worksheet 2-2 494.1 KB
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Student worksheet 2-3 480.23 KB
Show downloads
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Lesson 1 - base blue print 149.21 KB -
Student worksheet 1-1 465.43 KB
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Student worksheet 1-2 466.81 KB
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Student worksheet 1-3 464.19 KB
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Student worksheet 2-1 459.7 KB
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Student worksheet 2-2 494.1 KB
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Student worksheet 2-3 480.23 KB
Download all files as a .zip12.25 MB
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