BP A+ for Energy
BP 2015 First Place Winners
BP A+ for Energy provides grants and educational materials to teachers for curriculum projects related to energy conservation. As a part of their course work in EDUC 3106, Teaching Elementary Science the Mount Royal students, using an inquiry-based learning model, work with elementary students on environmentally sustainable projects. For example, they worked to find environmentally sustainable construction solutions for the proposed new interpretive center to be built at the Ann and Sandy Cross Conservation Area (ASCCA).
Questions included:
How can you minimize energy use through insulation?
Students constructed and monitored a model of insulation that minimized heat loss, minimized costs, minimized the ecological footprint associated with the type of insulation, and maximized the use of local materials.
How can you monitor temperature variations and store heat for cooler periods in the daily cycle?
Students constructed and monitored a model of heat storage that moderated daily temperature variations through storing hot daily temperatures and releasing this energy during the cooler times of the daily cycle.
How can you calculate the ecological footprint of a building?
This research project asked students to calculate the building's operational costs, the costs associated with school and community use of the building, transport costs, and social and economic benefits of sustainable building use.
Showcase: Each year, teacher candidates host a showcase event where they display their projects. Judges (representatives from BP and teachers who previously won the BP A+ for Energy award) assess these projects for features such as:
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Innovative approachs to learning about science and energy issues
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Integration of curriculum in a variety of subject areas
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Evidence of reflective practice and impact upon teaching
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Student learning and engagement (if data available)
First place winners receive a monetary award and the opportunity to attend BP's Alberta Teachers' Conference, the second and third place winners receive a monetary award.