Energy Everywhere! The Science That Powers Our World

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Energy is what makes everything happen. It’s the reason a rocket can launch into space, a plant can use sunlight to make its own food, or why you can run, jump, and play your favourite sport all day long.

Energy allows us to cook food, play music, charge our devices, and even think and breathe. Without it, nothing would move or change—no wind blowing, no water flowing, no life at all. From powering giant machines in factories to helping tiny cells in your body stay alive, energy is behind every action in the world around us.

Energy isn’t just one thing—it comes in many forms, each with its own role to play. There’s kinetic energy, found in anything that moves, like a speed sports car or a flying bird. Potential energy is stored energy, ready to be released, like a stretched bow and arrow or skydiver about to leap from a plane.

Light energy helps us see and powers the food-making process in plants - photosynthesis.

Heat energy warms our homes and cooks our food. Sound energy allows us to communicate and listen to music . And electrical energy powers almost everything around us, from fridges to phones. These different forms of energy can even change from one to another—like when electrical energy transforms into kinetic energy when you switch on a fan, or how kinetic energy can transform into sound energy when you beat a drum.

Almost all the energy we use comes from one place: the Sun. It gives us light and heat, warming our planet and making life possible. Plants use the Sun’s light to photosynthesise. In turn, animals—including us—get energy by eating plants or other animals. Even energy from wind, water, and fossil fuels can be traced back to the Sun. Wind is caused by the Sun heating the Earth unevenly, water flows in rivers thanks to ice-melt and rainfall driven by the Sun’s heat, and fossil fuels like coal and oil were formed from ancient plants that once captured sunlight. Without the Sun, Earth would be a frozen, lifeless rock floating in space.

Energy can change matter from one state to another. Ice melts into water, and water boils into water vapour. These changes happen in nature too, like snow melting in the sun or puddles evaporating after rain. These changes don’t create or destroy matter; they just rearrange how particles behave. Whether it’s melting chocolate, freezing juice, or boiling soup, energy is always at work changing one state of matter into another.

Energy can change from one form to another—this is called energy transformation. When you light a gas stove, chemical energy in the gas transforms into heat and light. Solar panels transform light from the sun into electrical energy, just as a wind turbine converts kinetic energy from the wind into electrical energy. When you strum a guitar, kinetic energy from your hand transforms into sound energy. And when you eat food, your body turns chemical energy into movement and heat. These changes are happening all around us, all the time.

Some energy sources can run out—these are called non-renewable, like coal, oil, and gas. Others, like sunlight, wind, and flowing water, are renewable because they naturally keep coming. Using more renewable energy helps protect our planet by reducing pollution and slowing down climate change.

Energy is all around us, making life possible and powering everything we do. From sunlight to sound, movement to heat, energy takes many forms and flows through every part of our world. By understanding where it comes from, how it changes, and why it matters, we can make smarter choices—using energy wisely and helping to care for our planet.