Going Green: Teaching Your Kids About Renewable Resources and Alternative Energy

There's an old adage that says that nothing lasts forever. That phrase is particularly apt when discussing fossil fuels - oil, coal, gas - and our reliance on them. One day, maybe not too far in the future, they'll all be gone.

With that in mind, it's important that we look to other, alternative forms of energy to supply our needs. Fortunately, there are abundant and renewable resources all around us, but we've got start taking advantage of them. Even more, we've got to encourage our children to do so.

Thankfully, there are a lot of products, many in the form of activities and games, that we can use to help teach our children about green energy and its many uses.

Snap Circuits is the name given to an array of renowned educational products from Elenco Electronics that teach kids about electricity, among other things. The company continues its tradition of making great educational products with the Snap Circuits Green Alternative Energy Kit.

The kit is explicitly designed to give kids a firsthand introduction to the concept of renewable energy through projects involving solar power, hydroelectric power, wind power and more. It includes various green energy items, such as solar cells, a hand crank and a water wheel.

Thames & Kosmos is a well-known manufacturer of science kits covering a diverse group of subjects, including chemistry, physics and alternative energy.

This particular kit allows kids to learn about alternative energy and sustaining the Earth's resources through experiments and the construction of energy-related projects and models. The projects include building a solar cell array, a hydrometer and a wind power generator.

Like the others in this hub, this science kit from Tedco teaches kids about renewable energy through various projects and science experiments.

Projects include using wind turbines as a source of renewable energy, utilizing solar power and much, much more.

Although it's been stated already, it bears repeating: our dependence on fossil fuels is not sustainable in the long term. Eventually, our supply will be depleted. (In other words, we will run out of coal, oil and gas.) Thus we need to begin preparing to incorporate forms of alternative energy into our lives.

In particular, we need to focus on developing solar power, wind power and hydroelectric power, as these are resources that we have in abundance. Moreover, we need to start teaching our children how to use and rely on these other forms of energy.

You can find other teaching toys and educational gifts at Cool Toys and Gifts. You can also get great ideas on stimulating your child's mind at How to Make Your Child Smarter.