Intro: Hydroelectricity

Hydropower Inventions

Intro: Wind Energy

Harnessing Wind Energy

Intro: Solar Energy

Solar Energy Sensing (micro:bit)

Renewable Energy

Draw conclusions about the process of harnessing hydropower energy.

Student Journal

Guide - Simple Machines and Linkages

Learn about the various mechanical inventions for laborious tasks eventually turning to utilize running water sources as renewable hydropower for a community. Create a mill and pour water over the wheel in a place where water can be collected and reused to power the movement to simulate a historical invention for grinding wheat and grains.

You are viewing the American-English version of this resource. [Click here to view in British-English.](/course/gb-city-building-course/gb-hydropower-inventions)

🇬🇧 Teacher Notes

#### Lesson Structure

When students go through this lesson in each section the objectives they will learn are:

* **Warm-up** – Recognize that inventors solve problems to make the world a better place.
* **Imagine** – Explain how the iterative nature of design aims to continually improve human life through the watermill invention.
* **Create** – Experiment with friction to create a mechanical invention that spins in water.
* **Build** – Build a water-powered mechanical invention to propel a grindstone.
* **Reflect** – Reflect on potential inventions such as the waterwheel to solve big problems in the world and how to improve hydropower with water conservation efforts.
* **Challenges** – Extend water-related prototypes through open-ended challenges that link to Sustainable Development Goals.

#### After this lesson students will be able to:

* Explain the importance of inventions and inventing in human society.
* Explore old mechanical inventions using water power as a source of renewable energy for laborious tasks.
* Evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of hydroelectric power.
* Experiment with friction to create a spinning machine to move a structure to simulate a grindstone for grain.
* Invent a design to address the Sustainable Development Goals.

Teacher Notes

Overview and Objectives

Materials

Facilitation and Collaboration Work

#### Teachers: Preparing Your Students (35-60 min)

When students begin the lesson, they start in [Overview and Objectives](#overview-and-objectives), then transition to this [Preparation](#preparation) section. Presented in their view is a vocabulary list of terms and infographics illustrating concepts across STEAM domains throughout this entire lesson.

There are extra guides and optional short intro lessons for preparing student readiness for their first engagement of new terms and content knowledge. Print or distribute the student journal and guides digitally. 

* Review [Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)](https://sdgs.un.org/goals). (5 minutes)
* Read through the vocabulary list. (5 minutes)
* Review the 6 simple machines. Download the optional asset and share to students. (10 minutes)
* (Optional) Pick a shorter, introductory lessons to further supplementing the guides. Assign lesson to students and start. (25 minutes)
* Set up an environment for running and reusing water. (15 minutes)

#### Water Source

The water wheel moves with continuously flowing water. To conserve water, place the project in a plastic bin and fill a pitcher with water to pour with. Then refill the pitcher with water poured from the plastic bin and retry the process.

#### Sustainable Development Goals

Review the [Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)](https://sdgs.un.org/goals) blueprint based on global needs to create a more sustainable world by 2030 before starting the lesson. (5 minutes)

Student journal

#### Vocabulary (5 minutes)

This is the list of vocabulary terms used throughout the lesson. They will be in **bold** and the definition listed throughout the different sections and in **Student Journal** asset. Students can always revisit the vocabulary definitions with media and questions in the lesson. (5 minutes)

#### Simple Machines and Linkages (10 minutes)

Review the 6 simple machines. There is an **optional** guide used as a printout or can be shared online to students before they engage this lesson. Each simple machine is designed to make work easier or more efficient and referenced in this lesson. Download the optional guide. (10 min)

### Optional Intro Lesson (25 minutes)

(Optional) Pick an introductory lesson to use with guide. **Students won't see these unless assigned to them by you.** (25 minutes)

Preparation

### Facilitation and Collaboration Work

Students can read and answer questions independently or as a group.

#### Inventing by Accident 

Throughout history, people have invented in order to solve problems and make something about the world better. Inventions range from the wheel and ancient **irrigation** methods to batteries, the internet, and smartphones. Some discoveries have taken many years, others have been discovered by accident, and other inventions resulted from something people thought was a failure!

* Stephanie Kwolek was the chemist who invented Kevlar, a fabric so strong, it can stop bullets! Her invention was discovered by accident. When attempting to make a substitute for steel in cars, one of the experiments failed. However, Kwolek was still curious about the liquid she accidentally made, and upon studying it closely, noticed that the fibers in the liquid had unusual strength, 5 times stronger than steel! This incredibly strong, thick, and durable fiber is now utilized in products such as bicycle tires and vehicle tires. Kevlar is included in these designs to prevent punctures or holes in the tires. In addition, Kevlar is employed in protective sportswear, such as fencing outfits and motorcycle racing gear.
* Henry Fleming, the scientist who discovered penicillin, the first antibiotic, discovered it accidentally. He was studying a common bacteria, and after leaving the petri dish near an open window, mold started growing on the dish. Juice from the mold killed the bacteria! His discovery has saved millions of lives.

#### **New Uses for Common Items**

Sometimes inventors think of new uses for familiar items, or deconstruct what is common in order to improve or create something new.

* Many people know George Washington Carver as a man who invented 300 uses for peanuts. Carver showed an interest as well as a talent with plants, medicines, and ways to improve soil and plant production from a very early age. Carver continued his studies with a Bachelor of Science and a Master of Agriculture and then began teaching farmers how to improve their crops. Some of his improvements were using swamp muck as a natural fertilizer, and feeding hogs acorns instead of having to buy feed, and teaching farmers to rotate crops to add nutrients back into the soil. Through **crop rotation**, farmers were suddenly producing an abundance of peanuts, and needed a market for this crop. As an advocate for these farmers, Carver invented many uses for peanuts, including peanut oil, Worcestershire sauce, paper, soap, and cosmetics.
* Leonardo Da Vinci lived in the 15th and 16th centuries and combined a love of sketching, observation, science, and technology in his inventions. Da Vinci **decomposed** machines by their parts and reimagined them into different types of inventions, such as a flying machine, a helicopter, a parachute, and scuba gear. While he actually made some of his ideas, such as a revolving movable bridge for an army, the majority of his inventions would not be made until hundreds of years later. 
* Kids have invented many great ideas that we use today! 11-year old Frank Epperson developed frozen popsicles, George Nissan created the trampoline at the age of 16, while Chester Greenwood designed earmuffs at the age of 15.

Common Core ELA

Florida - NGSSS

Warm-up

#### Power from Water

Societies have harnessed the power of water for millennia through the relatively simple invention of the water wheel. This invention is on par with other ancient inventions like the ramp, and the wheel, because of how it transformed society. Previous to the waterwheel and mill invention, people had to grind grain by hand, which was a very **laborious** process, but the invention of the water wheel and mill allowed civilizations to grind grains in bulk, and feed a larger population. 

 There were two early types of water wheel, the undershot wheel and the overshot wheel. Water from a river flowed under an undershot wheel and turned it upward. In an overshot wheel, the stream or river was above the water wheel and poured down on top of the paddles, propelling them downward. The energy of the water turned the paddles, which turned the axle of the wheel.

In an undershot wheel, water must flow very rapidly in order to generate sufficient power. In an overshot water wheel, people may have dammed a pond in order to provide an elevated water flow. Gravity exerts a force to pull the water downward, causing it to hit the wheel with greater momentum, thus generating more power.

#### Milling Grain

The Romans improved upon the water wheel design to grind or mill flour as early as the 4th century AD. In order to do this, another smaller wheel, 1/4th the size of the large water wheel connected to the axle of the water wheel. This smaller wheel or gear was also positioned vertically, but it interlocked with another horizontal gear. The horizontal gear turned a vertical axle called a stone spindle. This stone spindle turned a large millstone on top of another millstone. Grain poured down a chute into the millstones to be ground. The millstones were covered in order to keep the flour from flying out everywhere. Instead, flour would be collected in a small opening to one side of the millstones.   

Farmers needed mills in order to convert the wheat and corn they grew into flour or meal to be eaten. A miller would set the stones at different distances apart depending on what type of crop was being ground. There were deep grooves cut into the millstones which broke apart the grains to grind them into flour. Mills were also gathering places for people in the community to visit together while the miller was grinding their crop. Running a mill was a very important job that required constant maintenance. For example, the wooden spokes on the gears would sometimes break off, and a miller would need to fashion new ones to replace the old ones. In addition, the grooves on the stones wore down and had to be rehammered every few weeks. In the process of hammering the stones, tiny bits of rock sprayed up into the miller’s hands. Besides grinding grain, water wheels powered sawmills, textile mills, and even mines!

The most important reason to maintain mills was for safety. If the grindstones touched, they could cause a fire and even an explosion. Therefore, it was very important for a miller to always be aware of how the parts were working together in order to not create sparks, especially the millstones.

#### Modern Water Turbines 

* Today, water turbines are used to produce **hydroelectric** power instead of watermills. A key difference between **turbines** and water wheels is that **turbines** use water that swirls through blades that are curved or angled rather than flowing in a straight line. Romans were the first to use water **turbines**, but this invention did not become widely used until the Industrial Revolution. Several inventors tested and designed different **iterations** of the water **turbine**, and one of the most notable was James Bicheno Francis, whose new innovations led to the modern-day Francis Turbine. This type of **turbine** outputs roughly 60% of the world’s **hydroelectric** power. Francis’ main innovation was to create a turbine that used radial flow and minimized inefficiency or lost power. Radial flow meant that the water flowed horizontally to an inner wheel made of curved blades which spun, thus creating the “swirl.”
* In order for a **turbine** to generate a substantial amount of power, a **hydroelectric** dam is constructed. Rivers with a large drop in height are a prime location for a dam. Water stores more potential energy and thus can create more electrical energy if there is a larger difference between the elevation of the **reservoir** water behind the dam compared to the flowing river further down on the opposite side of the dam. Besides this height difference, the amount of available water also affects how much energy can be produced. For water to pass through, it must first enter near the bottom of the dam at the **intake**. Engineers are in charge of determining and controlling how much water enters the **intake**. As the water enters, it falls through the penstock with the help of gravity. As the water moves down the penstock, it reaches a **turbine** propeller. The **turbine** propeller is actually moved by moving water! This same **turbine** is also connected to a generator by its shaft. While the water continues onto the river stream below, coils inside the generator create electrical power. The generator connects to a transformer and long-distance power lines, or power transmission cables, next carry this electricity to our homes and communities.

#### Hydroelectric Power for Renewable and Clean Energy

* For a long time, many people have focused on the benefits of using **hydroelectric** power. **Hydroelectric** power relies upon moving water and does not lessen the amount of available water and is **renewable**, in the process of creating clean energy. Rainwater is also stockpiled in **reservoirs** for **hydroelectric** power plants, making more water accessible for our watering systems, farming needs, and human consumption. This recurring rainfall can be used to generate additional fuel as well or added to the electrical system if there is a sudden blackout or shortage and therefore a need for quickly-supplied additional energy. In addition, fuel is not burned and up until recently, it was supposed that greenhouse gases are produced with **hydroelectric** power, making it an energy solution that can help with addressing global climate change. 
* Besides confronting climate change, **hydroelectric** power is a lasting solution of affordable and clean energy. In fact, **hydroelectric** facilities typically last for 50-100 years, are low-cost to run and maintain, and are fairly straightforward to upgrade to the newest and latest technological advances. Hydroelectric power is dependable and understood, has been utilized for a long time and demonstrated to work, and ultimately can bring new development in the form of businesses, roadways, and energy that enrich and expand the economies of towns and cities where people live. Finally, **hydroelectric** power is better for the air, both for people and the environment, than fossil fuels. Unlike fossil fuels, hydropower does not pollute the air and contribute to the formation of microparticle toxins, smog, or acid rain in the air. Such pollutants lead to human sickness and death while also damaging our plants, animals, and their respective ecosystems. However, the encouraging news is that investment in hydropower is estimated to save over billions in healthcare and economic costs that could result from air pollution.

One of the main arguments for creating more electrical power through hydropower is it's renewability. Hydropower plants can use the same water over and over again to produce electrical energy and roughly the same amount of water is always on earth. In addition, it does not create smog or polluted air, thus it is also more beneficial for human health than burning fossil fuels.

#### Hydropower Controversy: Human Difficulties and Environmental Problems

* **Hydroelectric** power is not without significant controversies, especially concerning the environmental impact of creating **reservoirs**. These notable disadvantages and challenges affect humans, wildlife, and the environment. First of all, the clearing and submergence of land needed to create **hydroelectric** power plants can disrupt local ecosystems, causing loss of habitat and migratory patterns for land and aquatic wildlife. Hydropower plants can alter a river’s flow, water quality, or temperature, which may also affect local animal and plant life.
* Some especially controversial dam projects were the proposed construction of dams on the Little Colorado River in the Grand Canyon sites and surrounding land are important areas for **indigenous** people groups like the Navajo and Hopi people of North America. The Navajo, Hopi people, and other groups are currently working to oppose huge corporations in order to try to protect land and river areas that have been sacred for thousands of years. 
* Hydropower also contributes methane gas into the atmosphere. The vegetation that is flooded when a dam is constructed **decomposes** underwater and releases methane gas into the atmosphere. Some hydropower plants actually release more methane gas into the atmosphere than fossil-fuel burning plants, and methane is one of the leading causes of climate change.
* Another reason is making a **hydroelectric** plant is a significant investment cost and the build projects can take years to complete. Dams, **reservoirs**, and hydro facilities hold back a tremendous amount of water. If these water systems fail, the resulting floods can lead to a high loss of human lives, homes, and neighboring infrastructure. Factories, waste sites, and mines can even be **submerged**, causing significant pollution to local river systems.
* Last of all, hydropower is dependent on river flow and **precipitation**. Changing amounts of **precipitation** and resulting water supply over different seasons can impact the energy output of a hydropower plant. One solution to high amounts of rainfall and potential flooding is the use of a **spillway**. A **spillway** enables excess water to flow into another part of the river below, using a chute, step-down, siphon, or bell-mouth design, without overloading and harming the dam and the community below. **Spillways** remain dry most of the time.

SDGs

NGSS

Imagine

#### Facilitation and Collaboration Work

You can have students work on the instructions together in pairs of 2 going up to a group of 3.

Build water wheel paddles

Assemble the water wheel

Create an axle for the wheel

Balance wheels in hands and test under running water

Create

#### Facilitation and Collaboration Work

Students can work together on the instructions and take turns testing the pouring water on the spinning wheel of the grinding mill to align while another student adjusts the mill inside the container if it's moving around in between water pouring. Take care in letting students back away when water is released to avoid getting wet!

Build a stand for the water wheel

Close top of water wheel stand for axle

Fit water wheel and axle into the stand

Balance and test water wheel and stand under running water

Build the base of the mill

Build a beam for the grindstone

Make a moving joint

Switch corner of grindstone with joint

Attach the water wheel to the grindstone

Add an arm for the water wheel

Test the mill invention by pouring water to see how it spins

ISTE Students

Build

#### Facilitation and Collaborative Work

For this section of the lesson, the following questions below can be discussed all together as a class or within each group. You can use the **Student Journal** asset as a helpful resource to capture ideas and process on the computer or printed ahead of time and distributed.

Reflect

Challenges

References and Extra Resources

STEAM Classroom

United States

Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all.

Goal 7

Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization and foster innovation.

Goal 9

Obtain and combine information to describe that energy and fuels are derived from natural resources and their uses affect the environment.

4-ESS3-1

Obtain and combine information about ways individual communities use science ideas to protect the Earth’s resources and environment.

5-ESS3-1

Construct, use, and present arguments to support the claim that when the kinetic energy of an object changes, energy is transferred to or from the object.

MS-PS3-5

Define a simple design problem reflecting a need or a want that includes specified criteria for success and constraints on materials, time, or cost.

3-5-ETS1-1

Generate and compare multiple possible solutions to a problem based on how well each is likely to meet the criteria and constraints of the problem.

3-5-ETS1-2

Plan and carry out fair tests in which variables are controlled and failure points are considered to identify aspects of a model or prototype that can be improved.

3-5-ETS1-3

Define the criteria and constraints of a design problem with sufficient precision to ensure a successful solution, taking into account relevant scientific principles and potential impacts on people and the natural environment that may limit possible solutions.

MS-ETS1-1

Evaluate competing design solutions using a systematic process to determine how well they meet the criteria and constraints of the problem.

MS-ETS1-2

Students build knowledge by actively exploring real-world issues and problems, developing ideas and theories and pursuing answers and solutions.

1.3.d Knowledge Constructor

Students know and use a deliberate design process for generating ideas, testing theories, creating innovative artifacts or solving authentic problems.

1.4.a Innovative Designer

Students select and use digital tools to plan and manage a design process that considers design constraints and calculated risks.

1.4.b Innovative Designer

Students develop, test and refine prototypes as part of a cyclical design process.

1.4.c Innovative Designer

Students exhibit a tolerance for ambiguity, perseverance and the capacity to work with open-ended problems.

1.4.d Innovative Designer

Students communicate complex ideas clearly and effectively by creating or using a variety of digital objects such as visualizations, models or simulations.

1.6.c Creative Communicator

Recognize and explain that scientists base their explanations on evidence.

SC.4.N.1.7

Observe and describe some basic forms of energy, including light, heat, sound, electrical, and the energy of motion.

SC.4.P.10.1

Investigate and describe that energy has the ability to cause motion or create change.

SC.4.P.10.2

Describe how moving water and air are sources of energy and can be used to move things.

SC.4.P.10.4

Recognize that humans need resources found on Earth and that these are either renewable or nonrenewable.

SC.4.E.6.3

Identify resources available in Florida (water, phosphate, oil, limestone, silicon, wind, and solar energy).

SC.4.E.6.6

Trace the development of technology and the impact of major inventions on business productivity during the early development of the United States.

SS.5.E.1.3

Investigate and describe some basic forms of energy, including light, heat, sound, electrical, chemical, and mechanical.

SC.5.P.10.1

Investigate and explain that energy has the ability to cause motion or create change.

SC.5.P.10.2

Create a model to explain the parts of the water cycle. Water can be a gas, a liquid, or a solid and can go back and forth from one state to another.

SC.5.E.7.1

Recognize that the ocean is an integral part of the water cycle and is connected to all of Earth's water reservoirs via evaporation and precipitation processes.

SC.5.E.7.2

Explore the Law of Conservation of Energy by differentiating between potential and kinetic energy. Identify situations where kinetic energy is transformed into potential energy and vice versa.

SC.6.P.11.1

Explain how major physical characteristics, natural resources, climate, and absolute and relative locations have influenced settlement, interactions, and the economies of ancient civilizations of the world.

SS.6.G.2.1

Recognize that scientists who make contributions to scientific knowledge come from all kinds of backgrounds and possess varied talents, interests, and goals.

SC.6.N.2.3

Investigate and describe the transformation of energy from one form to another.

SC.7.P.11.2

Use geographic terms and tools to explain differing perspectives on the use of renewable and non-renewable resources in the United States and Florida over time.

SS.8.G.3.2

Describe human dependence on the physical environment and natural resources to satisfy basic needs in local environments in the United States.

SS.8.G.5.1

Describe how models and simulations can be used to solve real-world issues in science and engineering.

SC.35.CS-CS.1.2

Identify ways that technology can foster teamwork, and collaboration can support problem solving and innovation.

SC.35.CS-CC.1.3

Explain how text features contribute to the meaning and identify the text structures of problem/solution, sequence, and description in texts.

ELA.4.R.2.1

Explain how text structures and/or features contribute to the overall meaning of texts.

ELA.5.R.2.1

Explain how individual text sections and/or features convey meaning in texts.

ELA.6.R.2.1

Explain how individual text sections and/or features convey a purpose in texts.

ELA.7.R.2.1

Analyze how individual text sections and/or features convey a purpose and/or meaning in texts.

ELA.8.R.2.1

Explain how an author establishes and achieves purpose(s) through rhetorical appeals and/or figurative language.

ELA.8.R.2.3

Explain events, procedures, ideas, or concepts in a historical, scientific, or technical text, including what happened and why, based on specific information in the text.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.4.3

Interpret information presented visually, orally, or quantitatively (e.g., in charts, graphs, diagrams, time lines, animations, or interactive elements on Web pages) and explain how the information contributes to an understanding of the text in which it appears.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.4.7

Explain the relationships or interactions between two or more individuals, events, ideas, or concepts in a historical, scientific, or technical text based on specific information in the text.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.5.3

Draw on information from multiple print or digital sources, demonstrating the ability to locate an answer to a question quickly or to solve a problem efficiently.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.5.7

Analyze in detail how a key individual, event, or idea is introduced, illustrated, and elaborated in a text (e.g., through examples or anecdotes).

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.6.3

Integrate information presented in different media or formats (e.g., visually, quantitatively) as well as in words to develop a coherent understanding of a topic or issue.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.6.7

Analyze the interactions between individuals, events, and ideas in a text (e.g., how ideas influence individuals or events, or how individuals influence ideas or events).

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.7.3

Analyze how a text makes connections among and distinctions between individuals, ideas, or events (e.g., through comparisons, analogies, or categories).

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.8.3

Evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of using different mediums (e.g., print or digital text, video, multimedia) to present a particular topic or idea.