The Science Reflector - NCSTA Newsletter

BEWARE - Energy Hogs Last Seen Headed Your Way!

New energy education materials available for educators

Do you have energy hogs in YOUR home? If your home is wasting energy, chances are you do – and you’ve got to get them out. That’s the message students get when they take the Energy Hog Challenge – a new, free set of classroom activities created for grades 3-6. At a time when energy prices are rising and putting additional stresses on the family budget, now is a good time to teach your students the importance of saving energy.

The Alliance to Save Energy’s Energy Hog campaign was created by the Ad Council, creator of Smokey Bear, “Friends Don’t Let Friends Drive Drunk,” and other famous public service advertising (PSA) campaigns. This PSA campaign features a dastardly character, the Energy Hog, who puts an engaging face to the invisible concept of wasting energy. He takes a topic of low interest and makes it fun for children, while empowering them to inspire their parents to make smart energy choices.

To download the free classroom activities, go to www.energyhog.org and click on the Teachers button. A Teacher’s Guide takes teachers through the lessons, and a Student’s Guide can be printed out for each student. The Student’s Guide includes a take-home Energy Hog Scavenger Hunt that kids can do with their parents to evaluate the energy efficiency of their own home.

In addition to the classroom activities, the campaign includes TV, radio, and Internet PSAs directing people to the campaign website, www.energyhog.org. Here, children “train” to become Official Energy Hog Busters by successfully completing five fun games that also teach them how to save energy. Kids who win all five games and become Official Energy Hog Busters can print out a certificate.

Americans use more energy with each successive year. The Energy Hog campaign strives to decelerate this trend by raising public awareness about the benefits of saving energy at home.By practicing simple efficiency measures, families can build strong energy-saving habits, reduce their own energy bills, and help their communities by reducing energy-related pollution.

The Alliance to Save Energy is the nonprofit sponsor of the Energy Hog campaign. Partners in the effort include the U.S. Department of Energy, the Home Depot, the North American Insulation Manufacturers Association, 18 state energy offices, and one utility company.

On www.EnergyHog.org, several different Energy Hogs are found. Each loves to waste energy in a different way, and there are different ways to stop each of them, as kids learn to save energy at home.

Maria Ellingson is the campaign director at the Alliance to Save Energy. She can be contacted at mellingson@ase.org, or (202) 530-2247. More information on the Energy Hog campaign can be found at ww.energyhog.org.