Contest: National Energy Foundation Igniting Creative Energy National Student Challenge
Genre: Project can take any form and must include a one-page explanation
Theme: Explore new and creative ways to conserve energy and water. Communicate those ideas to others.
Prize: Grand prize is a trip to D.C.
Publish: http://www.ignitingcreativeenergy.org/guidelines1.htmlOdds of winning: One middle school winner in all of United States and Canada
I did this challenge two years ago after a major conservation unit. The unit went well, but the challenge didn't go as well. I didn't structure it very well and most students didn't complete a project. This time around the unit was much much shorter (spending most of our time doing other writing contests) but the challenge went better. Again I had twelve students participating; six of them completed the entire challenge and submitted to the contest. These students will receive certificates at our school awards assembly.
After we finished our projects, we took a field trip to the city landfill and took a tour. It was a great field trip and they had tons of projects displayed in their classroom. The students were inspired and had lots of ideas for projects after we left. Next year, I will take the students to the landfill before I assign the project. I think they will have more ideas and be inspired to work on bigger and better projects. I must say that I was proud of my students on the tour. They were upset at the large amounts of recyclable materials they could see in the landfill and it did inspire them to communicate what they had learned to friends and families. I think my class of twelve will do a school project, although it will be too late for the contest.
This is a contest I want to try and do every year. My students seem to really like conservation as a topic and I have a lot of materials to teach through a grant I participated in. This challenge is a great culmination to the unit, if I can ever make it all work together . . .
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