• Aluminum pie plate (or similar round object)
• String - ~ 45 cm long
• Scissors
• Eraser
• Pencil
• Small weight (e.g. nut from bolt)
• Tape
• Ruler

1. Cut out the bottom circle portion of the pie plate or similar round object.
2. Find the centre, and make dotted lines with a pencil to make eight equally spaced sections. It should look like a pizza, after its been cut.
3. Cut along these dotted lines toward the centre. Make the cuts go to about 2 cm from the centre of the plate.
4. Use the ruler to bend the same side of each of the cuts, to make small ledges.
5. Punch a hole in the centre of the plate and push the pencil through the hole, to the middle of the pencil. The pencil should be taped down to make it fit snugly in the hole.
6. Hold the wheel under a slow stream of water from the faucet or hose, such that the water hits the sides of the blades. Let the ends of the pencil rest gently on your fingers, such that the pencil can easily rotate as the water hits the blades.

• Increase and/or decrease the flow of water. What happens to the wheel?
• Tie one end of the string near the middle of the pencil, and tie the weight to the other end of the string. What happens to the string and the weight?

• Electricity is created when a coil of wire is rotated in a magnetic field. What role do you think the water plays in this process?

Water power is based on water at a higher level having more potential energy (stored energy) than water at a lower level. When water falls from a higher level to a lower level, some of this potential energy converts to kinetic energy. This falling water can move things, such as the blades on the object you have just made. By turning the wheel, this kinetic energy is converted into mechanical energy. This mechanical energy can do work.

In the past, people used mechanical energy from water wheels to grind grain and cut timber. Today, water power is primarily used in generating electricity, at hydroelectric plants. Huge dams are built to harness large amounts of water and control its flow. The controlled water flows through special pipes with great force and is used to move turbines, which in turn, rotates the electric generator.

Electricity production is based on the principle of electromagnetic induction – discovered by Michael Faraday in 1831. This principle states that if a conductor (e.g. copper wire) is moved through a magnetic field, an electric current will be induced into that wire.

Over 50% of Canada's electricty is generated by hydroelectric dams!