Unit Plan 8 (Grade 4 Science): Energy Conversions

Focus: Create and test devices that convert energy from one form to another (e.g., electrical to light/sound, motion to sound), using fair tests and design improvements.

Grade Level: 4

Subject Area: Science (Physical Science — Energy; Engineering Design)

Total Unit Duration: 5 sessions (one week), 45–60 minutes per session

I. Introduction

In this unit, students act as energy engineers, designing and testing simple devices that convert energy from one form to another (for example, electric energy to light, motion to sound, or light to motion). Building on their understanding of energy transfer and collisions, students explore everyday devices (flashlights, doorbells, wind-up toys) and then create their own model devices. They plan and carry out fair tests with controlled variables, record data, and use evidence to refine their designs so they work more reliably.

Essential Questions

• How can devices convert energy from one form to another (for example, electrical to light, motion to sound)?
• What does it mean to run a fair test, and why do engineers control variables when testing devices?
• How can we use data and observations to improve our energy-conversion designs?
• Where do we see energy conversions in everyday life, and why do they matter?

II. Objectives and Standards

Learning Objectives — Students will be able to:

1. Identify examples of energy forms (light, sound, heat, motion, electrical) and describe how one form can be converted into another.
2. Design a simple device (e.g., a circuit with a bulb or buzzer, a rubber-band car, a pinwheel) that converts energy from one form to another.
3. Plan and carry out fair tests, keeping at least one variable the same while changing another to see how it affects device performance.
4. Record and interpret test data (did the device work? how bright, loud, or far?) to identify strengths and problems.
5. Use evidence from testing to refine and improve the energy-conversion device and explain how the design changes helped.

Standards Alignment — 4th Grade (NGSS-Aligned)

• 4-PS3-4 — Apply scientific ideas to design, test, and refine a device that converts energy from one form to another.
• 3-5-ETS1-3 — Plan and carry out fair tests in which variables are controlled and failure points are considered to identify aspects of a model or prototype that can be improved.

Success Criteria — Student Language

• I can name at least two forms of energy and give an example of one form changing into another.
• I can design and build a simple device that converts energy (for example, electrical → light, motion → sound).
• I can plan a fair test by deciding what to keep the same and what to change in my device tests.
• I can use data and observations from tests to explain how well my device worked and how I improved it.
• I can describe where the energy starts and what form it changes into in my device.