Key Stage 3 Programmes

Beaufort Court is an ideal location to bring a class to find out more about renewable energy and what it can do. We have 5 different renewables here and during the site tour your class can get very close to a real wind turbine, see a solar array,biomass crop and borehole cooling. The secondary programmes are carefully thought out to, not only fit in with the National Curriculum, but also to provide fun, hands on activities which the students will enjoy. To book your visit, click here.

General visit Secondary (KS3)
Activity	Learning Opportunities
Theme: Renewables in Action	Science
Warm up and introduction - Why are renewable energy sources important? - Why do we need to care?	Activities to get the students thinking about renewables.
Tour of site: Looking at turbine, solar array, thermal store, borehole cooling and biomass crop	Free question and answer session; Speaking and Listening
BREAK (activities can be provided)
Constraints of onshore wind farms	Physical processes
Carousel of 6 different experiments using solar panels and wind turbine models Energy transfer by both wind and solar Effect of blade number & pitch and gearing on turbines Effectiveness of materials on solar thermal efficiency.	Science: Energy resources and energy transfer Electricity and circuits Forces and motion
Plenary
Total time:
Children will go home with: a hands-on experience of how the energy of the sun and the wind can be harnessed, with which materials and why, and what forces are a play in the process.

General visit Secondary (KS3)
Activity	Learning Opportunities
Theme: Wind as a source of power	Geography PSHE
Warm up and introduction - Why are renewable energy sources important? - Why do we need to care?	Activities to get the students thinking about renewables in the context of geography and the environment.
Tour of site: Looking at turbine, solar array, thermal store, borehole cooling and biomass crop	Free question and answer session; Speaking and Listening
BREAK (activities can be provided)
Constraints of onshore wind farmsVisually verified views	Physical processes
Role Play: Master Plan for a refurbishment of an office building with strict client commitments to sustainable development Wind Farm gameComputer simulation – using the information given the students place 9 turbines. The most efficient wind farm wins.	Geography : use of maps of different scales, photographs, local experts to advise on planning issues, roles and responsibilities. To use geographical information to decide on location of turbines.
Plenary
Total time:	3+ hrs
Children will go home with: a hands-on experience of how the energy of the sun and the wind can be harnessed, with which materials and why, and what forces are a play in the process.They will also have a better understanding of the planning process and the effect of constraints.

The above two programmes can be extended for sixth form students to include an explanation of the power curve and power calculations. For Year 11 and above an engineer can be available, by prior arrangement to talk about careers and give a more in depth view of the real life problem solving that happens on a daily basis here at RES.