Class: Science
Grades: 8th
Teacher: Kristina Ohl

Eighth grade students spent a class with Ms. Ohl investigating different forms of energy. What started as an introductory lesson about kinetic versus potential energy turned into a much more hands-on look at how energy is produced, transferred, and present all around us.

At one table, students placed glow in the dark toys under a lamp to absorb light (radiant energy!). Next to them, another group of students were cutting open hand warmers to test the material inside. Perhaps the most popular station included a hand crank flashlight that, when paired with certain attachments, omitted a high frequency pitch that always got a reaction.

The challenge was for students to determine what forms of energy were present in the materials they were assigned. To finish class, each group reported out what their objects were for and what forms of energy were used. Not only that, but the class also discussed what forms of energy were created in the process of the investigation. 

Students in Ms. Ohl’s Science class will continue to learn about different forms of energy in the upcoming unit.

More about this course: Energy Resources. Climate Science. Space Exploration. Genetics. Science topics regularly grace today’s headlines. In Science 8, we approach these and other current issues with a scientific lens to develop critical thinking, research, and science literacy skills. As we study the science behind current global issues, we explore how to support scientific claims with evidence, how to communicate scientific understanding, and how we as critical thinkers can engage with current issues through informed action and advocacy.