How can you get your kids to save energy without nagging them? It’s hard enough to get them to do their homework and clean their rooms, much less turning off lights and taking shorter showers! Here’s how to get started.
Many kids (and adults, for that matter) have no idea where their electricity comes from or how their actions affect energy bills. Teach them. Help kids understand each step of electricity generation, transmission, and distribution (based on what they can understand). The U.S. Energy Information Administration has a great site mapping what type of electricity fuels your area. And many utilities have educational centers or even guided tours!
Next, help kids connect the dots. Explain that coal, oil, or natural gas has to be burned (or huge dams, nuclear power plants, or wind or solar farms have to generate energy) when they shower or turn on a light. The EPA has a great website explaining the environmental impacts of coal, oil, and so on, if your kids are environmentally conscious (or you want them to be).
Then help kids understand your electric meter and how that corresponds to your energy bill. Teach kids how to read the meter—it can be easy and fun! Watch the meter’s dial spin faster by turning on an electricity-guzzling appliance like the dryer; then turn the appliance off and watch the dial slow down. Let kids know this is how your utility calculates your family’s electric bill. The lessons learned go beyond saving money and energy; they can understand their actions have consequences.
After kids understand their energy use is the same thing as spending money, help them lower it. What are kids notorious for? Leaving lights on! Friendly notes near lights may motivate younger kids to turn them off. The Alliance to Save Energy has a printable light switch cover that says, “Flip off the hog” (as in energy hog). Older kids can get a stark reminder if you just remove the light bulb (with safety taking precedence)!
Teenagers just stay in the shower forever! Water heating can account for up to 25 percent of household energy consumption, according to the Department of Energy. Parents have tried everything to curb long showers from showerhead shutoff valves and low-flow showerheads to flushing the toilet or dumping cold water on the kid. The best bet may be simply using an egg timer.
Get the whole family involved and make it fun with a reward. If the family saves energy and money on the electric bill, take the money saved and go to the movies or another fun family activity. Now that’s motivation to save energy!
Finally, there are a slew of kid-oriented energy sites, with games and interactive ways for them to learn about energy. Here are a few:
--Treena Colby