The Human Power Grid An Electricity Unit Activity by: Jon Wilson, NMGK-12 Fellow for: Mrs. Barranco’s 2nd Grade Class school: Lafayette Elementary

Directions The Human Power Grid Game 1. Print out these slides and familiarize yourself with the power grid. 2. Use the slide entitled “electric power grid” to explain how we get power from an electric source into our homes. 3. This presentation should come after the “Basics of Electricity” slide show. 4. Go through the steps of the power grid using the provided cards so that the students understand what the “house” represents and what the “transformer” represents and how they relate to their locations on the power grid. 5. Cut the pictures from the slides along with their title and mount them on some type of yarn or string as a necklace. 6. Divide the students into two groups of 12 (minimum of 12). 7. If the class is smaller than 24, the power grid can be shortened by taking out some of the power lines which were added to make the kids realize wires are needed throughout the grid. 8. The power grid can also be lengthened to accommodate larger class sizes by inserting more power lines or adding an extra step before the appliance is turned on etc. 9. After everything has been explained and the students are divided into teams, place the cards face down on the floor in front of the first group. 10. Tell the group they must all run up to the pieces and take one. They should then line up according to where their piece occurs in the “power grid.” 11. Tell them they will be timed, and emphasize that it does not matter which piece they take but how quickly they can arrange themselves in the proper order of the power grid. 12. Also mention that they should work as a team and help each other by ensuring the people on either side of them is in the right order. 13. Give each group one practice run to test their time and strategy efforts. Then, let each group go a second time for competition. 14. The second trial run is the one judged, showing the students how much faster they are able to establish the power grid.

Goals The Human Power Grid Game The “Human Power Grid” Game is an interactive game to help the students understand the steps involved in getting electricity from an energy source (i.e. the sun or falling water) to our homes. It emphasizes the concept of a process that requires a specific order to reach the final outcome. If any part of the chain is out of order, the students can see that electricity will not make it to our homes. This can be related to the students by way of simple comparisons like: Do you put toothpaste on your toothbrush before or after you brush your teeth? The order is shown to be very important in this comparison much like it is in the power grid. The “Human Power Grid” game also allows the students to interact and understand the idea behind working together as a team. These ideas should be reinforced to the students each time they assemble the “human power grid.” **When cutting out these cards, make sure to cut the number printed in the top left corner of the slide out!!!

The Electric Power Grid Explanation Slide

Source 1.

Power Station 2.

Power Lines 3.

Large Substation 4.

Power Lines 5.

Small Substation 6.

Power Lines 7.

Transformer 8.

Fuse Box 9.

House 10.

Switch or Plug 11.

Appliance 12.