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Year 5

Insulating our homes and schools (non-statutory Climate Change & Sustainability)

I can find out about ways to insulate our homes and schools.

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Share activities with pupils
New
New
Year 5

Insulating our homes and schools (non-statutory Climate Change & Sustainability)

I can find out about ways to insulate our homes and schools.

Download all resources
Share activities with pupils

Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. Insulating buildings reduces the amount of fuel we need to keep them warm in winter and cold in summer.
  2. Other measures can reduce fuel costs, such as reducing the temperature we expect of our rooms.
  3. Temperature data can be collected around the school to reveal heat losses.
  4. Temperature data analysis can result in costed actions for children and adults to take to reduce heat losses.
  5. Fuel cost data comparisons will show whether actions have an impact.

Common misconception

Insulation is used only to keep houses and other buildings warm.

Pupils will learn that insulation is designed to slow down heat exchange between buildings and the outside, keeping buildings warm in cold seasons or climates, or cool in warm seasons or climates.

Keywords

  • Insulate - If a material insulates electricity or heat it means it does not allow it to pass through it easily.

  • Fuel - A fuel is something that can be used to generate heat or light, and electricity is now considered an alternative fuel.

  • Temperature - Temperature is a measure of how hot something is.

  • Compare - We compare things by looking at what is the same and what is different.

  • Impact - The impact of something is the effect it has.

Encourage pupils to understand that insulation is used to reduce heat exchange between buildings and the outside air, not just to keep buildings warm.
Teacher tip

Equipment

Thermometers, free thermal image camera apps can be downloaded for free and used on electronic devices.

Content guidance

  • Risk assessment required - equipment

Supervision

Adult supervision required

Licence

This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2024), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0 except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).

Video

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Starter quiz

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6 Questions

Q1.
Match the property to the definition.
An image in a quiz
Correct Answer:absorbent, soaks up water

soaks up water

Correct Answer:waterproof ,does not soak up water

does not soak up water

Q2.
If you want something to stay warm, which of these types of materials would you wrap it in?
Correct answer: thermal insulator
thermal conductor
electrical insulator
electrical conductor
Q3.
Which of these materials would you use to make a mat to protect a table from a hot saucepan?
An image in a quiz
metal
glass
Correct answer: cork
Q4.
Which of these would improve the thermal insulation properties of a material?
Correct answer: pockets or layers of air
pockets or layers of metal
Q5.
Which of these statements is true?
Thermal insulators help things cool down.
Thermal insulators help things warm up.
Correct answer: Thermal insulators keep warm things warm.
Correct answer: Thermal insulators keep cold things cold.
Q6.
In an investigation to see which was the best at keeping warm soup warm, the temperature of soup was measured in three different bowls over 10 mins. Which bowl was the best at keeping the soup warm?
An image in a quiz
glass bowl
ceramic bowl
Correct answer: plastic bowl

Exit quiz

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6 Questions

Q1.
Match the season to the reason why fuel is used in buildings.
Correct Answer:winter ,to warm them up

to warm them up

Correct Answer:summer,to cool them down

to cool them down

Q2.
In winter, which of these actions is likely to reduce fuel costs?
An image in a quiz
Increase the temperature we expect of our rooms.
Correct answer: Reduce the temperature we expect of our rooms.
Make no changes to the temperature of our rooms.
Q3.
How does insulating buildings affect the amount of fuel needed to keep a building at a stable temperature?
An image in a quiz
Correct answer: It reduces the amount needed.
It does not affect the amount needed.
It increases the amount needed.
Q4.
How could you investigate heat loss around a school?
collect sound data
Correct answer: collect temperature data
collect moisture data
collect light data
Q5.
If you analyse temperature data in response to actions linked to thermal insulation, you can find out ...
An image in a quiz
the effect of thermal insulation on children’s happiness.
the effect of temperature on people's concentration.
Correct answer: the effect of actions intended to reduce heat loss.
Q6.
How can you tell whether actions to reduce fuel use have had an impact?
Measure fuel costs after the action.
Correct answer: Compare fuel costs before and after the actions.
Measure fuel costs before the action.
Q3 Riisipuuro/Wikimedia Commons Images Q5 Nick Nguyen/Wikimedia Commons Images