Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum | Education at Cooper-Hewitt

Posted by: Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum 4/5/2010 2:04:03 PM

Title:	ENERGY, Eco-Icons that Electrify!
Grade Level:	Middle School
Subject Area:	Arts Language Arts Science
Lesson Time:	1. 5 hours
Introduction:	Helping your community “ go green” can oftentimes be a question of communication and design. Many of the environmental problems we face are abstract or difficult to understand right away. Designers that use graphic arts and visual mediums help to simplify and effectively communicate these issues in unique ways. From logos, to signs, print media and online visualizations, designers help to organize and communicate vital information to the public in many ways. Bright, green, leafy trees are frequently used to graphically communicate information about environmental concerns. In this lesson, students will become designers for the day. They will be challenged to design a new symbol or “ eco-icon” to explain the need to conserve energy, promote renewable energy and/or make the connection between energy use and climate change. Students will design icons in teams and present to each other. The winning icon should be easy to read. It can be placed around the school to promote energy conservation and awareness. This lesson promotes the application of language arts standards, helping students think critically and use design strategies to communicate and evaluate vital information.
Standards:	Language Arts Communication Strategies - Students employ a wide range of strategies as they write and use different writing process elements appropriately to communicate with different audiences for a variety of purposes. Applying Language Skills - Students use spoken, written, and visual language to accomplish their own purposes (e. g. , for learning, enjoyment, persuasion, and the exchange of information). Participating in Society - Students participate as knowledgeable, reflective, creative, and critical members of a variety of literacy communities. 'Visual Arts Choosing and Evaluating a Range of Subject Matter, Symbols and Ideas: Students use subjects, themes, and symbols that demonstrate knowledge of contexts, values, and aesthetics that communicate intended meaning in artworks Making Connections Between Visual Arts and Other Disciplines: Students describe ways in which the principles and subject matter of other disciplines taught in the school are interrelated with the visual arts Science: Science in Personal and Social Perspectives - Populations, resources, and environments
Objectives:	Students will design a sign and icon to help their school community reduce energy use and connect energy consumption to issues of climate change. Students will make signs in other languages Students will learn about graphic design, arts and communication Students will understand the value of communication and easy to understand design in achieving effective communication Students will understand the role of designer as a communicator and shaper of ideas
Resources:	https://www. savioalphonso. com/sprout. html https://www. projectmlab. com/ https://www. buyameter. org/ Cooper-Hewitt, 2010 National Design Triennial See Energy Aware Clock and Power Aware Chord
Materials:	Poster board, old magazines, Sprout Eco-Icon set (link above)
Vocabulary:	Graphic Design - The term graphic design can refer to a number of artistic and professional disciplines which focus on visual communication and presentation Climate Change - Refers to changes in long-term trends in the average climate, such as changes in average temperatures Carbon Dioxide - One of the major greenhouse gases. Human-generated carbon dioxide is caused mainly by the burning of fossil fuels. Greenhouse Gas - Greenhouse gases are gases in the atmosphere that absorb and emit radiation within the thermal infrared range Energy Efficiency - The practice of using less energy to provide the same level of energy service. Energy Conservation - Energy conservation is the practice of decreasing the quantity of energy used.
Procedures:	Introduction to Graphic Design (10 Minutes - Review) Talk to students about the field of graphic design. Graphic design is a form of visual communication. Designers use text, images, sounds and experiences to communicate a story or a message. In this lesson we are going to use the tools of graphic design to communicate about energy efficiency and conservation. Energy conservation is any behavior that results in the use of less energy. Turning the lights off when you leave the room and recycling aluminum cans are both ways of conserving energy. Energy efficiency is the use of technology that requires less energy to perform the same function. A compact fluorescent light bulb that uses less energy than an incandescent bulb to produce the same amount of light is an example of energy efficiency . However, the decision to replace an incandescent light bulb with a compact fluorescent is an act of energy conservation . (Department of Energy) What are some major energy problems facing Americans? Cost of Energy - the cost of energy has skyrocketed in the past few decades because of limited resource availability. Environmental Impacts - many environmental impacts stem from energy use, production and consumption including - Air quality, Water quality, Land-use and Climate change issues. Next, focus each students’ attention to their school building. Explain that we are going to create an eco-icon or symbol to help reduce energy use in the school. Talk with students about what kinds of things in the school consume energy and what kinds of energy. The two most basic forms are heat energy (fuel oils, natural gas) and electricity (natural gas, coal, oil). The school building consumes a lot of electricity and heating fuel. Ask your school principal to supply you with energy bills to see just how much and from what sources your energy is being produced. Many opportunities for Language Arts applications exist here including communication strategies and ways to participate in society. Past and Future Icons (10 minutes - Investigate) Transition to a discussion about commonly found symbols that concern the environment. What are some common symbols that address environmental issues? For instance: The globe, Recycling symbol A tree or leaf No Littering Signs No fishing/dumping What about for energy? Energy Star A plug or outlet Electric Bolt High Voltage How do these symbols convey anything about energy? Do you feel they communicate a story about impacts of energy consumption or the ways that energy use relates to your life? Discuss some pros and cons of existing eco-icons. Technology Connection A large number of consumer technologies are helping policymakers and communities alike understand their energy consumption. These help to visualize when and how we use energy. Consider some technology applications below. Some of these objects can be found in the National Design Triennial Ambient Devices - Energy Joule: Helps you save money by showing the current price of energy and level of consumption in the home. The data is updated continuously from your energy company. You just plug into an outlet. DIY Kyoto - Holmes and Wattson: The Holmes and Wattson devices help homeowners keep an eye on their energy use through real-time measurements that connect to a simple program on your computer and a real-time display that looks like a clock. Power Aware Cord : The Power Aware cord helps make the invisible visible. Designed by Anton Gustafsson and Magnus Gyllensward at the Interactive Institute in Sweden, it signals the amount of energy that flows to an appliance through glowing pulses and intensity of light. The design is based on our intuitive notion that light symbolizes energy use, and gives people direct feedback and the feeling of both seeing and interacting with electricity. Energy Aware Clock ( pictured below ): Electricity is invisible, and for many of us, it is something we take for granted. The Energy Aware clock, designed by Loove Broms and Karin Ehrnberger, in collaboration with Sara Ilstedt Hjelm, Erika Lundell, and Jin Moen for the Interactive Institute in Sweden, shows electricity use in real time: if the dishwasher is turned on, the energy surge appears immediately on the clock’ s display. School Icons (10 minutes - Frame/Reframe) Now focus on your school. Conduct a field study to identify all the major signage and icons found in your school. Common school sinage may help us find: Bathrooms Garbage/Recycling Bins Lunch Room/Auditorium/Gym Office/Teacher Lounge Sporting While students are investigating evidence of graphic design in the school, they can also conduct a visual energy audit. Encourage students to notice where a lot of electricity is being used; where are the light switches thermostats? The students should estimate which areas use more electricity than other. To incorporate the development of writing skills, have each student compose a short essay about the impacts of graphic design. Read examples from Project M Lab’ s project such as “ Buy A Meter ” - a graphic design program that helped residents in Hale County, Alabama fundraise for water meters in their community. Ask students - does graphic design affect you in your daily life? How could better graphic design affect your community in a positive way? For instance, what if it were easier to find the locl park, a place to hang out or a place to skateboard? Where to buy good ice cream or how to find a bike route to school? Use questions such as these to discuss the role of graphic design in your school community and local area. Graphic Design Lab: Part One (20 minutes - Generate Possible Solutions) After investigating your school and how graphic design impacts students, it is time to design! Divide students into graphic design teams or students may work individually. Challenge each team or student to design an eco-icon to communicate something about energy in his or her school. The icon should be clear and connect the need for conservation/efficiency and relate to environmental and health impacts. The icon should encourage action. Provide students with scrap paper and magazines with which they can collage. Print out examples of eco-icons for assistance from Savio Alphonso . Each student/team should develop 2-3 icons to share with the rest of the class. Graphic Design Lab: Part One (20 minutes -Edit and Develop) After 20-30 minutes, students should fine-tune their icons and each student should choose 1 or 2 to share. Pass the symbols around the class and have each student guess what the icon is trying to communicate. Each student should write down the message or meaning of the design on the back of his or her sketch pad/notebook. Pass the student's icons around and have peers guess what the icon is encouraging. Can others easily read the message? (Share and evaluate) Choose the top 3 symbols and as a class decide where these can be placed in you school. Post the most successful designs around school to encourage green consciousness from others in your academic community.
Assessment:	Reflection Questions Over the past week have you seen any inspiring “ go green” logos? Will you pay more attention to green design in the future because of today’ s class? Would having a way to monitor your energy consumption make you more likely to reduce the amount you use? Why or why not? If you had never seen your own design, would it encourage you to become more energy conscious?
Enrichment Extension Activities:	No Enrichment Extension Activities available.
Teacher Reflection:	N/A.
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