Kids can learn about alternative energy and the relationship between heat and energy by doing science experiments at home. For instance, your child could make a solar powered oven using a cardboard box and aluminum foil. These ovens are constructed by making an opening at the top and one side of the cardboard box to allow the sun to hit the inside of the box. The sides are then covered with aluminum foil to reflect light and generate heat. Children can then watch and observe how long it takes the solar oven to heat up and how long it takes to cook cookies, brownies or other baked goods.
Heat and energy can be explored with experiments using water heated to different temperatures. One clear bowl is filled with cold water, while another is filled with hot water. Once the water is still, kids put a drop of food coloring into the center of each bowl. They can then observe how quickly the food coloring disperses in the water bowls. The bowl with hot water disperses the food coloring faster because its molecules are moving faster than the bowl with cold water.
Kids can test the thermoconductivity of various types of metals at home. Understanding thermoconductivity and thermodynamics will help children understand the way that heat and temperature is transferred. For this experiment, kids have two paper or Styrofoam cups, one filled with room temperature water and the other with ice. Horseshoe shaped pieces of aluminum, brass, copper and steel are placed in the cups of water one at a time, with one end in the cup of ice and one end in the cup of water. Kids measure the change in the temperature of the water over a 30-minute period for each piece of metal to determine which one conducts energy better.
Another experiment involves learning about temperature, heat and liquid density. Four different liquids --water, vinegar, canola oil and sugar water -- are heated to 5, 25 and 75 degrees Celsius. The density of the water is then tested by placing a buoyant object, such as a rubber ball, in the liquids and measuring how well it floats or sinks. Kids can use graduated cylinders to measure the buoyancy or just mark where the ball floats and sinks on a clear glass jar. Heat affects the buoyancy of each liquid differently.