Name:_________________________________________________ Date:_________________________
Lab Renewable and Non-renewable Resources
Activity: Renew-A-Bean
Purpose:
The sources that provide the energy we use every day can be divided into two different
groups:
Renewable and Non-Renewable. Renewable energy sources are those that we
can use over and
over again. Non-Renewable energy sources are those that are used
and cannot be recreated in a
short period of time. In this activity you will be given a bag
of “energy beans.” Each bag
contains energy provided by both renewable (white beans)
and non-renewable (brown beans)
sources. You will “use” the energy provided by both
types of sources by randomly picking beans
from a bag – some of the “energy” you use
will be renewable, some will be non-renewable. You
will see what happens to the
renewable/non-renewable energy sources that remain after many
years of energy use.
Materials
1.
One plastic bag containing 90 brown kidney beans (representing non-renewable
energy
resources) and 10 white beans (representing renewable energy resources).
2.
Calculator
3.
Pencil
Procedure
1.
Split into groups of 2-3 students.
2.
Collect all equipment and materials necessary to conduct the activity.
3.
Part 1: Have one person from each group pick out 10 “energy beans” from the bag,
without
looking. These 10 beans represent the energy that is used in one year.
4.
Count the brown and white beans and record the number on the attached data
collection sheet for Year 1.
5.
The brown beans represent energy from non-renewable energy sources, so when a brown bean
is picked it cannot be returned to the bag (place it aside). The white beans are renewable
energy beans, so they should be put back into the bag each turn after counting them.
6.
Let another person from the group pick 10 beans to represent energy use in Year 2. Fill in the
number of brown and white beans on the chart, and return the white beans
as in step 5.
7.
Repeat the process, returning all white beans to the bag after each person’s turn, until
20 years
have passed or until all the brown energy beans are gone.
Name:_________________________________________________ Date:_________________________
8.
Part 2: Consider the growing use of power and energy over time. Repeat steps 3
through 7,
but increase the amount of energy use by picking out 5 additional “energy
beans” each year
(pick 10 beans in year 1, 15 beans in year 2, 20 beans in year 3,
etc.). Record information on
the attached data collection sheet.
9.
Complete the concluding questions.
Questions
1.
How many years did it take for the non-renewable energy sources to run out when you
used 10
energy beans per year?
2.
How many years did it take for the non-renewable energy sources to run out when you
increased the rate at which we consumed resources each year (part 2)?
3.
What are some examples of renewable and non-renewable energy sources?
4.
What does this activity demonstrate about our consumption of resources - what will
happen
if we keep using non-renewable resources?
5.
Describe what happens to the proportion of renewable vs. non-renewable energy
sources
that remain available, as energy is used over time.
Name:_________________________________________________ Date:_________________________
Data collection for renew-a-bean –
Part 1: No increase in the number of beans used each year
Year
Total
beans
removed
Number
brown
beans
Number
white
beans
Percent of
beans that are
renewable
white beans
x100%
total beans
Number of
beans
remaining
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
Name:_________________________________________________ Date:_________________________
Data collection for renew-a-bean –
Part 2: Increasing use in the number of beans used each year
Year
Total
beans
removed
Number
brown
beans
Number
white
beans
Percent of
beans that are
renewable
Number of
beans
remaining
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
