Educational Materials

Educational Materials for Every Age

Understanding energy shouldn’t be complicated or intimidating. Whether you’re a student, parent, teacher, policymaker, or simply curious about America’s future, Energy 101 provides clear and engaging educational resources that help make these complex topics easy to understand.

Our expanding library includes classroom materials, fact sheets, infographics, videos, presentations, and downloadable guides that illustrate how America’s energy system functions—from oil and natural gas to nuclear, coal, hydropower, and new technologies. Each resource aims to promote energy literacy by providing facts, data, and real-world examples.

Elementary School

Elementary

Types of Energy

Subject: Science

TEKS: K.5.B, K.6.A

Kindergartners use their senses to sort classroom items like a flashlight, whistle, and ice into light, sound, and thermal energy categories.

Elementary

Let's Rock

Subject: Science

TEKS: 2.8.A, 3.8.A

Students swing a string-tied fork against rocks and objects to observe how sound travels differently through materials, mimicking seismic exploration.

Elementary

Good Vibrations

Subject: Science

TEKS: 2.8.A, 3.8.A, 4.8.A

Students experiment with rubber bands, cups, and pulley cords to see how sound vibrations travel and relate to seismic oil exploration.

Elementary

Oil Drop Hide and Seek

Subject: math

TEKS: 2.10.A

Students search for hidden “oil drop” chips, then graph and analyze the results on a bar graph to model a limited resource.

Elementary

Cruisin’ With Energy

Subject: Science

TEKS: 3.5.E, 3.8.A, 3.8.B

Students compare a pushed toy car, a battery-powered car, and a gasoline-powered car to identify potential/kinetic energy and everyday energy sources.

Elementary

From the Ground to All Around

Subject: Science

TEKS: 3.11.A

Students stack layers of bread and paprika, then drill a straw “core sample” to model how oil and natural gas form underground.

Elementary

What Does It Mean?

Subject: English Language Arts

TEKS: 4.3.A, 4.3.B

Students build energy-related vocabulary like “hydrocarbon” and “stewardship” through flashcards, a word-swat game, and Mad Libs.

Elementary

Welcome To Texas

Subject: Science & Social Studies

TEKS: 4.5.A, 4.5.B, 4.7.A, 4.7.C, 4.9.A, 4.9.B, 4.9.C

Students play a board game retracing the Texas oil boom, linking the Spindletop discovery to the state’s growth and natural resources.

Elementary

What is Energy (MELTS)

Subject: Science

TEKS: 4.6.A, 4.7.C, 4.9.B, 4.13.B

Students use the MELTS acronym to classify everyday objects as mechanical, electrical, light, thermal, or sound energy.

Elementary

Where in the World are Energy Resources?

Subject: Science & Geography

Teks: 4.6.B, 4.9.A, 4.9.B

Students build pie charts and maps using energy fact cards to see where U.S. oil, coal, and renewable resources are produced and used.

Elementary

Rock 'N' Roll

Subject: Science

TEKS:4.6.C

Students use hand lenses to examine sedimentary rocks and discover which physical properties let them store oil and natural gas.

Elementary

Give It A Lift

Subject: Science

TEKS: 4.7.A

Students build straw-and-eyedropper “pumping” models to explore how forces and artificial lift systems bring oil to the surface.

Elementary

Digging Deep

Subject: Science

TEKS: 4.7.C

Students stack layers of bread and paprika, then drill a straw “core sample” to model how oil and natural gas form underground.

Elementary

Let's Get Physical With Oil

Subject: Science

TEKS: 4.7.C

Students compare the color, texture, smell, and mass of water, oil, and syrup to learn how crude oil’s physical properties are classified.

Elementary

Tower of Power

Subject: Science

TEKS: 4.11.A, 4.11.B

Using a milk-and-vinegar model of an oil refinery, students learn how crude oil separates into everyday products.

Elementary

Seeping Stones

Subject: Science

TEKS: 5.7.A

Students test six rock types for water absorption to see how porosity and permeability trap oil and natural gas underground.

Elementary

How Can We Take Care of Our World

Subject: Science

Students play a matching game and discuss examples to learn how conserving energy and land benefits both the environment and the economy.

Elementary

MELTS (Energy Acronym)

Subject: Science

Students go on a classroom scavenger hunt to identify mechanical, electrical, light, thermal, and sound energy using the MELTS acronym.

Elementary

Rocking Rock Hunters

Subject: Science

Students learn to classify rocks as igneous, sedimentary, or metamorphic and explore why petroleum forms in sedimentary basins.

Elementary

Well Site Safety

Subject: Science

Through coloring sheets, flashcards, and bingo, students learn well-site safety rules and why oil and gas equipment areas are not play areas.

Middle School

Age of Oil

Subject: Social Studies

Students explore a history-themed “newspaper” tracing the 1901 birth of Texas oil and its economic impact on the state.

Middle School

Cobra Weave

Subject: Science

TEKS: 6.8.A

Students weave a popsicle-stick “cobra weave” chain to watch potential energy convert into kinetic energy when released.

Middle School

St. Rita's Well

Subject: ELA & Social Studies

Students read about the 1920s Permian Basin oil boom and analyze the poem “Rose of Texonoiland” using the TPCASTT method.

Middle School

Traveling
Sound

Subject: Science

TEKS: 8.8.A

Students run tuning-fork and rock experiments to see how sound waves travel through solids, liquids, and gases, linking it to seismic oil exploration.

Middle School

Weighty Problems

Subject: Science & Engineering

Students design, budget, and build a straw-and-paperclip oil derrick model, then test how much weight it can support.

HIGH SCHOOL

Drill in the Right Direction

Subject: Math

TEKS: Alg1 2.A/2.B/2.C/2.E; Geo 9.A/9.B/10.B/11.D

Students use coordinate graphing, trigonometry, and volume formulas to model directional oil-well drilling and storage-tank capacity.

HIGH SCHOOL

Production Profit

Subject: Math

TEKS: Alg1 2.B/3.F/3.H/5.C; Alg2 3.E/3.F/3.G

Students graph systems of equations and inequalities to find breakeven points and maximize profit for oil and gas wells.

HIGH SCHOOL

Informative Writing

Subject: English Language Arts

TEKS: b.1.A

Students read a chapter of Upton Sinclair’s “Oil!” and draft a five-paragraph informative essay through the full writing process.

HIGH SCHOOL

Detail and Tone

Subject: English Language Arts

TEKS: c.4.G, c.8.F, c.9.B.ii

Students analyze historical oil-industry excerpts and a podcast episode to identify descriptive detail, imagery, and authorial tone.

HIGH SCHOOL

Rhetoric

Subject: English Language Arts

TEKS: c.8.G

Students watch oil-and-gas industry commercials to identify pathos, logos, ethos, and logical fallacies in persuasive advertising.

HIGH SCHOOL

Analyzing Informational Text

Subject: English Language Arts

TEKS: E1.1.A-D, E1.2.A-G, E1.3.A, E1.4.A

Students explore a history-themed “newspaper” tracing the 1901 birth of Texas oil and its economic impact on the state.

HIGH SCHOOL

Foundations of Energy

Subject: Science / CTE

An intro module covering how Texas energy is produced, its quality-of-life benefits, and related career and economic opportunities.

HIGH SCHOOL

Got Oil?

Subject: Math

Students graph oil-production and gas-price data to find intervals of increase/decrease and calculate rates of change.