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An Independent, Coed, Friends School, Nursery Through Grade 12

Fourth Grade’s Great Energy Debate: Pitching the Future of Energy in the U.S.

Step into the Oval Office, where a new generation of energy experts is taking charge. Fourth graders at Moses Brown School recently transformed their classroom into a high-stakes political arena, lobbying for the future of energy in the United States. Armed with research and persuasive pitches, these young leaders debated the merits of coal, natural gas, wind, solar, and nuclear power.

They pitched their assigned resources to none other than the “President of the United States.” For the purposes of the classroom activity, the Commanders in Chief were played by two different community members: Head of School Katie Titus and MB parent Ethan Gyles. Aside from being “President” for an hour in Lower School, Ethan is part of the leadership team at Nexamp, a company focused on broadening clean energy utilization in the U.S.

“I really liked doing the energy project because I think it felt really real,” shared fourth grader Remy. “I learned a lot of things about all sorts of energies. And I got to experience some things that people have to choose and decide in real life. That's one of the reasons I love Moses Brown.”

Students were able to point out downsides to their opponents’ energy sources as well, which added an element of debate.

In real life, groups of lobbyists don’t form a half circle around the President’s desk for a civil presentation on the merits of their preferred energy source. But the MB “Oval Office” allowed for this.

After the very detailed energy presentations, ‘President’ Titus said she had spent time with her cabinet on all of the proposals that had gone back and forth. “There were a lot of good points made by all of the groups,” she said. 

Her cabinet decided to allocate funds to each group, though not equally. She spelled out in detail the reasons for the funding choices, responding specifically to points the student lobbyists had made. “Thank you all. You were excellent in your presentations,” she said in closing.

Lower School science teacher Elizabeth Grumbach, who guided them in their preparation, noted that many students “had to argue an energy position that they didn't really believe, and that was really hard.” But they represented their assigned viewpoint with thoroughness and determination regardless, and in doing so reinforced their knowledge of energy sources overall.

“It’s more important than ever for us to understand how our society produces energy, and the pros and cons of each technology in our energy mix.” said Ethan Gyles P’33. “It was a real pleasure to hear the fourth graders come to the ‘Oval Office’ to present their research. The students came eager to engage in lively debate!” 

“I was impressed with their attention to cost, carbon emissions, manufacturing, safety, reliability, and human health factors,” Ethan added.

This faux Oval Office project gave students a sense of how research and presenting information in a compelling way will be so important for their futures.