Solar Oven – Take Home the Science
One of the best parts of any science lab is thinking about what could be done differently to improve the result of an experiment. The pizza box oven is a fun way to make S’mores. In our trial using oven #1, the S’more was ready in about 20 minutes. During the one hour trial the temperature reached about 138 degrees. We made the window smaller for our oven #2 to see what would happen in a second trial. Oven #2 did not get as hot. Making the window smaller was not an improvement to the oven.
Give it a try. Make a hot S’more. Enjoy the melted goodness. Then change something in the oven design to see if you can improve the oven. [More foil, less foil, more black paper, add an insulator, etc.] We measured the temperature every 5 minutes using an oven thermometer that was poked through one of the sides.
Solar ovens can be used to melt cheese on a cracker, warm up leftover pizza, or heat up a hot dog.
Below are some links to Solar energy science ideas:
Solar Pizza Box Oven:
https://www.perkinselearning.org/activity/create-solar-powered-oven-out-pizza-box
https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=1&v=ifNkNnkHMYU
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pjsrRi2Bxl0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xZJmz_tF4NU
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kBmy-AeIzp0
Making a Solar Balloon or Kite: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VNcRiSoEDZ0
Light and Optics for Kids: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ydfeJQ2cWv0
Fun with Sun Sensitive Paper (ideas from Google search). Sun sensitive paper can be purchased at craft stores or Amazon.
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