Construct Solar Oven S'Mores-Measure Heat Energy with Thermometers

Want a lesson that is laid out for you step by step on the smartboard and can be used in Google Classroom? Everything is laid out for you to say & do every step of the lesson!

This is a guided lesson that will take you from start to finish as you teach your students all about using heat energy from the sun to cook yummy s'mores! Each slide takes you and your students step by step in engineering a solar oven. The slides include detailed pictures and photographs of the solar oven as your students create it. They will use thermometers to take and record temperature data 3 times as the s'mores cook. They will create a chart from this data. The data will show students how their device created with conductors (foil, black paper) and in similar nature to a greenhouse increased the warming effects of sunlight.

The essential questions you will assign your students are:

How can we use heat energy from the sun to cook s'mores?

How can we construct and design a device to increase the sun's warming effect on foods like marshmallows & chocolate?

How can we use thermometers to gather data that would prove or disprove the effectiveness of our warming device?

This lesson can be used for digital, distance learning to send out in Google Classroom to students or as a link in an email to parents if they have these materials.

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You will need the following materials to complete this STEM engineering challenge:

S3P1. Obtain, evaluate, and communicate information about the ways heat energy is transferred and measured. 

a. Ask questions to identify sources of heat energy. (Clarification statement: Examples could include sunlight, friction, and burning.) 

b. Plan and carry out an investigation to gather data using thermometers to produce tables and charts that illustrate the effect of sunlight on various objects. (Clarification statement: The use of both Fahrenheit and Celsius temperature scales is expected.) 

c. Use tools and every day materials to design and construct a device/structure that will increase/decrease the warming effects of sunlight on various materials. (Clarification statement: Conduction, convection, and radiation are taught in upper grades.)