Candy Collector

Activity 1: Candy Collector

&Background

This fun activity is designed to introduce students to the terms “renewable” and “nonrenewable”. Students will get a closer look at how long energy sources will last when using only nonrenewable sources, and when incorporating renewable sources of energy.

Objectives

ƒStudents will be able to predict a response based on a pattern of observations. ƒStudents will be able to describe the difference between renewable and nonrenewable resources.

Time

ƒ1 class period  Materials

PER STUDENT: ƒ1 plastic straw ƒStudent Worksheet, page 65 PER SMALL GROUP: ƒ50 M&Ms candies or similar ƒ3 jelly beans ƒ2 plastic bowls ƒA small plastic cup

2Preparation

ƒGather supplies needed for the game. ƒPut the M&Ms candies into bowls for each group. Set up stations so that each group will have each of the materials listed above, except the jelly beans. The jelly beans will be passed out later.

Procedure

INTRODUCTION

1. Divide the students into groups of 2-4. Place a group at each station with the materials. Have them choose a name for their energy consuming community and record it in the data table in the Student Guide. 2. Explain to the students that the candy in the bowl will represent energy. The empty bowl is their discard bowl. 3. Tell students that during the game they will transfer candy from the full bowl to the plastic cup to “consume energy.” However, they may only use the straws to transfer the energy – NO hands allowed! 4. Make sure students know they must wait to eat the candy until the end of the game.

PART 1: NONRENEWABLES

1. Set a timer for 15 seconds. 2. Tell groups that when the time starts, they will need to provide energy for their town. They must use their straw to provide suction to extract energy from the full bowl. They must transfer this energy into the cup. They may transfer as many candies as they can before the year ends, but they may not use their hands at all – not even to hold the straw! A year will last 15 seconds. 3. After 15 seconds, have students count how many candies made it into their cups during the “year.” Students should record this amount in the data table. 4. Ask students to keep a tally of how much they extracted and how much remains. 5. Place any candy in the cup into the extra discard bowl. 6. Extract energy for 3 more “years,” following the steps above. Ask students how much energy remains in their original bowl (if any). Ask them to predict how many years their energy sources would last.

PART 2: NONRENEWABLES AND RENEWABLES

1. Tell students to place ALL candies back into one bowl. Add three jelly beans to each group’s bowl. 2. Explain to students that as time went on their town has become better able to predict how much energy it needs. Explain to them that they will still transfer candy, but each year are only required to get 2 pieces of candy per person. 3. Set the timer for 15 seconds. Remind students they may only use their suction – NO HANDS! 4. Allow students to extract their energy for 15 seconds, transferring 2 candies per person into the cup. Ask students if all groups met their energy needs of 2 candies per person? How many candies remain in their original bowl? 5. Ask groups to discard ONLY the M&Ms from their cup into the discard bowl. The jelly beans may be placed back into the original full bowl to be gathered for future years! 6. Complete three more 15-second “years”, each time discarding the M&Ms and returning the jelly beans. Ask students if their energy candy will last longer knowing they can reuse the jelly beans? How many “years” might their candy last? 7. Explain to the class the definitions of renewable and nonrenewable energy sources. Ask the class which candies represent renewable energy sources, and which candies represent the nonrenewable energy sources. Discuss as a class how this game is similar and different to using energy sources in the real world.

Alternative for Individual Game Play

ƒIf class sturcture, germs, or other considerations require an individual set-up, provide each student with three containers, a straw, and fewer candy. During the second round, eliminate “per person” requirements, and instead dictate a limit of candy per round of play.

Candy Collector

 ? Question

What do you think happens when energy resources are limited?

Materials

ƒ 1 Straw per person ƒ 1 Dish of candies per group ƒ 2 Empty containers per group

Procedure

PART 1: NONRENEWABLES

1. Your group represents a community that uses energy. Think of a name for your community and write it below. 2. When your teacher says go, you will transfer candies for 15 seconds. This 15 seconds represents energy use for one year. 3. At the end of the each “year”, count the candies and write the number in the data table. Pour the candies into an other empty bowl, after each year is counted.

Community Name: ___________________________________________________________________________________________________

Community Members: ________________________________________________________________________________________________

PART 1: NONRENEWABLES

Year

1 2 3 4

Number of Candies Collected

Conclusion

PART 1: NONRENEWABLES

1. How many candies did your community use each year? If you had collected candy for one more year, how many do you predict you would have collected?

2. How many years do you predict your candy would have lasted? How can you figure it out using math?

3. What kind of energy sources do your candies represent?

PART 2: RENEWABLES

1. Your teacher will add a different kind of candy to your dish. 2. Write each member at the top of the data table for Part 2. Each person gets his/her/their own column.

Add another column if necessary. 3. Transfer candy following your teacher’s instructions. 4. Count and record the candy collected in the table.

PART 2: RENEWABLES

Year

1 2 3 4

Number of Candies Collected

name:________________ name:________________ name:________________

 Conclusion

PART 2: RENEWABLES

1. Did everybody recover enough energy for year 1?

2. What was special about the new kind of candy?

3. What kind of energy sources do the new kind of candy represent?