About

Solar power is free energy! We use solar power every day, for example to dry clothes on a clothesline. Solar power can be converted into electricity, and that is very useful too. By aiming the sun’s rays at a pot or an oven, you can cook food! Cooking with solar power is becoming popular because it is cheap and clean.
 

Your task

Design a solar-powered cooker for use at home, for a picnic, or for camping. It may work as a stove, an oven, a grill, or a kettle. Think about the kind of food or drink that your cooker can make, how to use the sun’s rays for heat, and how to make your solar-powered cooker convenient and safe to use. Make a working solar-powered cooker out of wood or other materials. Work on this project in a small team with a group of your classmates.
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Follow the design steps

To design something well, do it step-by-step and use the methods from the Design Thinking for Schools website. There are four design steps. The first step is LEARN. To design something, you must first learn about it. There is much to learn on any topic, and it is always interesting. Learning will help you to understand the thing that you are designing, so you can do a good job. The second step is DRAW. Try to think of as many different ideas as you can while you draw them with pencil on paper. Keep drawing until you have some ideas that you really like. Improve your ideas and combine them into a single excellent idea. Drawing is easy and fun. Enjoy it! The third step is MAKE. Make the thing that you are designing to show your teacher and classmates. You can only tell if your idea works by making it. Improve your idea while you are making it. Making something with your hands is fun too! The fourth step is TRY. Once you have made something, you should try it to see if it works or not. You can also let someone else try it to see what they think. When you try, you will often find ways to improve your design idea. That will make you a better designer.
 

​​​​​​​Note for teachers

Read the guide for teachers on Safety for the MAKE Step for Level II to safely supervise this design task.