ISLAND TREES MIDDLE SCHOOL TESTIMONIAL
The Keep the Heat project was found to be a successful learning experience in the Island Trees Middle School. The students were very enthusiastic from the initiation to the final completion. We started the project with twelve students and completed with thirty-five students.
The initial testing material was Styrofoam. The project began with two boxes. Each box was constructed to the specifications found within the protocol of the project. Island Trees was fortunate enough to utilize Pasco Probeware to test all data. This ensured a highly accurate reading and interactive way of recording and displaying our data. Students were eager to test other materials but we were limited by time. We did however test the R-value of peanuts used for packaging materials. Students accumulated enough of these to construct a total of two layers. Layers were separated by cardboard.
After recording all data and performing careful analysis of the trends, Island Trees concluded that the Peanuts had the greater R-value. Our data showed that the amount of heat loss was the least when using only two layers of peanuts and cardboard (see attached data sheets)
To ensure a successful experiment we used the same testing box with the same heat source. The box and the heat source represented the controls in this experiment while the different insulators were our variables.
It was clear that our team was satisfied with the data we recorded. Island Trees was only faced with one dilemma during this experience. As aforementioned, the lack of time prevented us from testing numerous other recyclable materials.
Our final recommendation is that insulating materials are most effective when they are built in with air spaces. One student made a correlation between a down comforter with air spaces and a heavy sleeping bag. His idea was that the air sacs in the comforter would provide a greater period of warmth and heat retention thus a greater R-Value. Keep The Heat has sparked the interest of many more students in our school. As for the rest of the year, Island Trees plans on continuing their investigations. We look forward to creating an educational portal for teachers from all over the world to use. This will be directly threaded in with the Educational Electronic Village and will feature streaming video and detailed protocols for teachers to take into their classrooms.
The collaborative effort of the teachers involved motivated and enriched the learning experience. The M.S.T standards and cross-disciplinary approach facilitated by the teachers reinforced the Math, Science and Technology portions of this project. In addition to the M.S.T integration, which is richly woven within our Middle School Technology curriculum "The Keep the Heat" project unlocked the student’s critical thinking and creative abilities.
The relevant importance of conserving energy and our natural resources sparked the students to become interested in experimenting with recycled materials and collecting data. The conservation message was instilled during the designing, testing and videotaping of the boxes. The student’s hand painted original designs and campaign slogan on the boxes.
This project overall was a perfect example of constructive education, faculty team work and having student shining through a multidisciplinary approach to learning. The success of the project can be attributed to the global awareness of this project as a key factor and the dedication of students of Island Trees.
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