S'mores Energy: Worland students cook with solar

WORLAND – With materials and a lesson plan provided by the Washakie County Conservation District, Worland Middle School seventh-grade science students tested the mechanics of conduction cooking on Tuesday, by making and using solar ovens to cook dessert.

"It's really a culminative activity so the students can apply what they've learned in mechanics, to utilize solar energy," said teacher Robert Woffinden.

Woffinden's wife, Vanessa Woffinden, a Conservation District educator, lectured the class on the three types of heat transfer (radiation, convection and conduction), before passing out materials and instructions to the class.

Per the experiment, the students lined donated pizza boxes with aluminum foil, made a cellophane viewing window, and inserted a thermometer and graham crackers, marshmallows and chocolate chips.

As instructed by Woffinden, the students used a 24-minute cycle to cook their s'mores in the sunlight, recording temperature readings every eight minutes, before reaching a final temperature of 36 degrees, Celsius (96.8 degrees Fahrenheit).