How do you teach energy literacy in the wild? You partner with the people who power Alberta.
By Ken Hoffman
STEM Innovation Academy Energy Enrichment Lead and SW Junior High Science Lead
Last week, Grade 9 students from STEM Innovation Academy’s Southwest Junior High campus visited TransAlta’s Spray Hydroelectric Plant near Canmore as part of a Health and Life Skills field trip — one that we were proud to energy enrich through authentic, place-based STEM learning.
Learning directly from TransAlta’s Sebastián Lagos and Sharon Payne, students discovered how the Spray Plant converts mountain water into electricity for millions of Albertans while maintaining environmental stewardship.
At the trailhead below Grassi Lakes, students rotated through four Science 9 field stations designed to connect curriculum to the natural world:
Unit A – Biological Diversity – Exploring how water flow and habitat change influence local species and ecosystems.
Unit B – Matter and Chemical Change – Investigating the chemical composition of limestone and dolomite, and the reactions that weather them.
Unit C – Environmental Chemistry – Testing water quality and considering how pH, dissolved solids, and temperature reflect water quality.
Unit D – Electrical Principles and Technologies – Learning directly from TransAlta’s Sebastián Lagos and Sharon Payne about how the Spray Plant converts mountain water into electricity for millions of Albertans, all while maintaining environmental stewardship.
This collaboration was made possible thanks to Steve Pearlstone (TransAlta) and Donna Dhanoa (STEM Innovation Academy), whose leadership initiated and supported this meaningful partnership between education and industry.
Students left the day with a deeper understanding of how energy systems, living systems, and human systems are interwoven in their world.
STEMIA Journal 