Lesson video

Hello, my name is Mrs. Gulliver and I am so pleased that you are here to do some geography learning with me today.

Today, our lesson is called Renewable sources of energy, and it's from our unit on energy, how we power the world.

By the end of our lesson today, you will be able to identify the advantages and disadvantages of renewable sources of energy, and you'll be able to form an opinion about their relative merits.

Some of the learning might be a bit new to you today, but that's okay, I'm going to be here with you to help you through the whole lesson.

We've got four keywords for our learning today, so I'll have a turn at saying them and then I will give you a turn to practise saying them as well.

So first one, my turn, renewable energy.

Your turn.

Well done.

My turn, carbon emissions.

Great.

Hydro-electric power.

Brilliant.

And last one, biomass.

Fab! Now, we'll find out a bit more about these as we go through the lessons, but we'll just have a quick look at their definitions.

So renewable energy are sources of energy that can be reused and will not be used up or run out.

Carbon emissions are the release of carbon into the air and atmosphere around us.

Hydro-electric power generates electricity by using water.

And biomass is organic, so natural material, that can be used as a fuel.

Our lesson today is split into two parts, and the first part we're going to get going with, what are renewable sources of energy? So as we just heard in the definitions, renewable energy sources are sources of energy that can be reused again and again and again and it will not be used up or run out.

They use or harness, make the most of natural resources to create energy.

I'd like you to have a think with the person next to you, can you think of any sources of renewable energy? Did you come up with lots of ideas? Here's some I thought of.

The sun is a source of renewable energy.

Waves are a source of renewable energy and so are wind.

You might have thought of those or you might have come up with some different ideas.

Well done.

Now, the benefit or one benefit of renewable energy sources is that they have very little impact on the environment.

They do not release carbon emissions into the atmosphere, and that means they do not contribute to climate change.

Some people call them a cleaner form of energy.

Here's our first check today, and I've got five blanks for you to fill in.

Renewable energy sources are sources of energy that can be and will not be used up or.

They have very minimal on the environment and do not release many and do not contribute to.

I'd like you to have a go at filling in those blanks.

Great job.

Let's see if you came up with the same ideas as me.

So renewable energy sources are sources of energy that cannot be, that can be, sorry, that can be reused and will not be used up or run out.

They have very minimal impact on the environment and do not release many carbon emissions and do not contribute to climate change.

I'm sure you got all of those correct.

Well done.

So here's a pie chart showing us how electricity in the UK was generated in 2023, and you can see there I've circled that the most, the biggest contributor to electricity generation in 2023 was renewable sources of energy, and they contributed just over 47% of the electricity used in the UK.

Fossil fuels, so our coal, oil, and gas, contributed about 36%, and nuclear energy contributed about 16%.

So in 2023, about 47% of UK electricity was generated by renewable energy sources.

That's nearly half, nearly half of all the electricity generated in the UK comes from these renewable sources of energy.

Now, by 2050, the UK government would like us to be what they call net zero, and this means that they hope and plan to be able to produce energy that does not produce carbon emissions.

So they want to be using more and more of these renewable energy sources by 2050 so that they are not releasing carbon emissions when they produce energy.

And by using more renewable sources, they'll be leading and heading towards that aim of being net zero by 2050.

And because renewable sources of energy are not releasing carbon emissions and do not contribute to climate change, more and more countries are turning to renewable sources of energy.

And in Iceland and Costa Rica, they're able to produce over 99% in Iceland of their electricity through renewable energy sources.

And in Costa Rica, they're able to produce over 90% of the electricity that the country uses also from renewable energy sources.

So nearly all of their electricity production comes from these renewable sources of energy.

And for both Costa Rica and Iceland, hydro-electricity is the main renewable energy source that they use, and we're going to be finding out more about that.

So, for your first task today, I would like you to first of all, number one, explain what are renewable energy sources, and give at least two examples in your explanation.

And then for question two, I'd like you to create your own pie chart which shows what you hope the pie chart for UK electricity generation will look like in 2050 when the government aims to be net zero.

So I'd like you to have a go at creating what you hope it will look like.

There's the one for 2023, and what do you think it might look like in 2050? You could also have a discussion with your partner about how the UK government would have to get there to change from what the pie chart looks like now to what it will hopefully look like in 2050.

I know you're going to try really hard with these two tasks.

Have a go and I'll see you in a little bit.

Well done for working on those tasks.

Let's have a look at some answers.

So for question one, what are renewable energy sources? You might have included some similar ideas to me.

You might have said, renewable energy sources are those that can be reused without getting used up and will not run out.

They use natural resources such as the sun and wind to generate electricity.

Some examples of renewable energy sources are solar power, wind power, and wave power.

And then for task two, here's my hope for what UK electricity generation may look like for 2050.

So I'm hoping 90% of our electricity comes from renewable energy sources like Costa Rica and that perhaps 10% comes from nuclear energy, and that none of it is produced from burning those fossil fuels in 2050.

Your pie chart might have looked similar or it may look a bit different.

For the second part of the lesson, we're going to look at the pros and cons of different types of renewable energy.

And we're gonna start off by having a think about hydro-electric power.

Approximately 70% of the Earth's surface is covered in water.

So if you have the whole surface of the Earth and split it into 10 equal parts, seven of those are covered in water.

So the majority of the Earth's surface is covered in water, and this water can be used to make power.

Hydro-electric plants are powered by water and they use reservoirs to store water behind big dams and then they release the water downhill to power turbines, to spin turbines, which can create electricity.

So that's how we use hydro-electric power to create electricity.

And there are, like with everything, some pros and some cons to using hydro-electric power.

And some of the pros are that there's no carbon emissions released in the production of electricity through hydro-electric power, it can generate huge amounts of power, and also we can store the energy in a dam and release it when it's needed.

So when people are likely to use more electricity, we can let the water flow through to produce electricity.

And if people may not be using as much electricity, we can keep the water stored and only generate it when it's needed.

Now some cons, some of the bad points about hydro-electric power are that it's very expensive to build dams, and also this production of energy uses a lot of water at a time when water conservation is a global concern.

There's not always enough water for people and the planet's needs.

Finally, in some cases, when hydro-electric dams are built, then valleys can be flooded, and this can cause the loss of homes for people and habitats for animals.

Another source of renewable energy is solar energy.

And solar panels contain small cells that can convert sunlight into direct electricity.

This can be used in the place where it is produced, it can be stored in batteries, or it can be distributed across the country.

The panels can be placed on rooftops or the ground in solar farms. And at the moment, about 5% of the UK's electricity is produced through solar energy.

So, some pros and cons of solar energy.

It works well in sunny climates when sunlight is plentiful, there's no carbon emissions that are caused by solar energy, and once the solar farms are set up, it's very low maintenance and cost to keep it going.

Now some of the cons, the bad points, it is expensive to set up all of those solar panels in a solar farm.

And as you can imagine, they require quite large areas of space.

And another negative or con for solar energy is that obviously, it only works during daylight hours.

So no energy is produced during the nighttime.

We're going to have a look at wind energy now.

Wind has been used as a source of energy throughout history.

Many years ago, windmills used to be used to grind grain to make flour.

Today, wind turbines are used, and when the wind blows, the turbine blades turn a rotor and this then powers a generator to produce electricity.

At the moment, about 25% of the UK's electricity is powered by wind energy.

Let's have a think of our pros and cons for wind energy.

It is cheaper to run than other renewable energy sources and it can be used on land or offshore, so offshore being in seas.

And the wind, as we know, is plentiful.

There's no stopping how much wind there will be.

Wind farms also tend to produce more electricity in winter when the demand for electricity is higher.

And it's believed that wind energy could produce more than enough energy to power all of the global needs.

So a very beneficial renewable energy source.

Some negatives for wind energy.

It is expensive to set up, to set up those turbines.

Some people find the turbines noisy and ugly, and they can also be a threat to wildlife, especially birds.

And then lastly, if the wind is too light, if it's not strong enough, no power is generated, 'cause we need the wind to move the turbines to generate the electricity.

The final renewable energy source we're going to look at is biomass energy.

Now, biomass energy is organic waste, like wood and plants, which can be burnt to make energy.

Some crops are grown specifically for biomass energy, such as poplar and willow trees.

And once they're grown, the trees get turned into wood chips like in that picture and then they are burnt.

So, some pros for biomass energy.

When the trees are growing, before they're turned into wood chip, they can absorb carbon as well.

And when it's well managed, more plants can be planted to produce energy.

So we can anticipate the energy needs and plant more if needed.

Lastly, biomass energy can be used to replace fossil fuels in power stations.

Some of the cons.

Obviously, when the biomass chips are burnt, it does release carbon emissions, and the trees need to be transported to a power plant, so that also releases carbon emissions in their transportation.

Lastly, to grow the crops, the willow and poplar trees, this also requires large amounts of land, and this could be used to grow crops to feed people instead.

I've got check for you before your final task of the day.

So I've got three statements below and I'd like you to decide if they're talking about hydro-electric power, solar energy, or wind energy, or they might be about more than one energy source.

Okay, so I've got A, do not release carbon emissions, B, can be used on land or offshore, and C, very expensive to set up.

So I'd like you to match each of those statements to at least one, if not more, of the renewable energy sources.

Have a go with your partner.

Let's have a look and see if we came up with the same answers.

So I said do not release carbon emissions.

That's all three, hydro-electric power, solar, and wind energy.

Can be used on land or offshore.

That was hydro-electric power.

Very expensive to set up.

That was all three as well, hydro-electric power, solar, and wind power.

Great job.

You're absolutely ready to have a go at your final tasks for today.

So the first thing I'd like you to do is to match each of the statements on the left to the correct renewable energy source on the right.

So read through those six statements and then match them up to the correct energy source.

And then the final question for you to have a good old think about is, which renewable energy source do you think would be most beneficial to set up in your local area? Why? So I'd like you to explain your choices as well and tell me why you think that renewable energy source would be best for your area.

Well, I look forward to seeing how you get on in a little bit bit.

Have a go at these final two tasks.

Well done for all that geography thinking.

Let's have a look at the answers together.

So, let's go through the statements first of all.

So the first statement was, energy can be stored in a dam and released when needed, and that's that hydro-electric power.

Only works during daylight hours.

Well done, that was solar.

Can affect river ecosystems. Well done, that was hydro-electric power.

Tends to produce more electricity in winter when demand is higher.

Great job, wind power.

works well in sunny climates.

Very good, solar.

And last one, can be a threat to wildlife, especially birds.

That one was wind as well.

Okay, and then when you had to choose which renewable energy source you thought would be best for your local area and why, you might have included some of the same points as me.

I would choose to set up a wind energy farm in my local area.

This is because our town is not near a river or stream, so we wouldn't be able to set up a hydro-electric energy source.

Also, wind can produce energy at all times of the day, and wind turbines are less costly to set up and maintain than other renewable energy sources.

So I would've chosen wind turbines and wind power as my renewable energy source.

Great job with your learning today! Let's have a think about everything we've covered.

So we found out that renewable sources of energy include solar, wind, hydro-electric power, and biomass.

Renewable energy sources can contribute to reducing carbon emissions.

Some countries like Iceland and Costa Rica get nearly all of their energy from renewable energy sources.

And finally, different forms of renewable energy have a range of advantages and disadvantages, those pros and cons.

Thank you so much for joining me for this geography lesson today.

I hope to see you soon.