Renewable/Non-renewable Resources Activity

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Renewable/Non-renewable Resources Activity

• Adapted from UNC-Wilmington curriculum

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Essential Question

• Why is sustainable use of natural resources
  important?

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Natural Resources

• ALL of the things we use in our physical
  environment to meet our needs and wants, such as
  water, land, materials for clothing, etc. We can
  put all of the things that we use into two
  categories non-renewable and renewable resources.

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What is a renewable energy resource?

• Renewable energy is natural energy which does not
  have a limited supply.
• Renewable energy can be used again and again,
  and will never run out.
• Perpetual resources are those that have a never
  ending supply.
• Types
• Biomass
• Hydro-electric
• Geothermal
• Solar

• Tidal
• Wave
• Wind
• Wood

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Non-Renewable Resources Activity

1. Students each pick up a slip of paper from a bag
   (there are 4 1st generation, 6 2nd
   generation, 9 3rd generation, and 14 4th
   generation slips)
2. Teacher goes to the front of the classroom with a
   bag of popcorn, and leads a brief discussion of
   what it means when one generation finds a
   resource and how future generations are affected
   by it.
3. 1st generation students then come up and take as
   much popcorn as they want back to their seats.
   2nd generation students then do the same,
   followed by 3rd and 4th generations.

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Sustainability of Resources
What are the advantages and disadvantages of
using a resource in a sustainable way?
Advantage It can last forever. Disadvantage
You need to control your use of it.
What advantages and disadvantages are there to
using a resource in a nonsustainable way?
Advantages People can use as much as they want
of an available resource they can make a lot of
money in the short term. Disadvantage They can
destroy the resource base for themselves and
future generations.
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What is a non-renewable energy resource?

• An energy resource that is not replaced or is
  replaced only very slowly by natural processes
• Fossil fuels are continually produced by the
  decay of plant and animal matter, but the rate of
  their production is extremely slow, very much
  slower than the rate at which we use them.
• Types
• Coal
• Oil
• Nuclear
• Natural Gas
• Tar Sands and Oil Shale

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• Discussion
• How the students acted in using the resource?
• Was there any waste that occurred? (popcorn
  dropped on the floor)
• Was any thought given to students coming
  afterwards?
• Were there were protests from students?
• What was the quality of popcorn towards the end?

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Follow-Up Questions

• Categorize the following as renewable,
  non-renewable or perpetual resources

• A field of corn
• Oil in the Arctic tundra
• Coal in the Appalachian mountains
• Sunshine
• Trees in a forest
• Tuna in the ocean
• Sand on a beach
• A breeze over the Texas plains
• Water in a river

• Which resources would continue to be available no
  matter how much people used them? Perpetual
• Under what circumstances would a renewable
  resource not be renewable?

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Follow-Up Questions

• What could be some effects of population growth,
  natural disasters, disease, and advanced
  technology systems on resource availability?
• What are some advantages and disadvantages of
  using renewable resources in place of
  non-renewable resources?

• List as many renewable resources as you can find
  in your classroom.
• List as many non-renewable resources as you can
  that are found in your classroom.