⚡ Energy City — a free maths game for kids
You are mayor. Solar, wind, hydro and gas — meet the demand, then watch the weather ruin your plan.
Energy City is where arithmetic stops having one right answer. Supply must equal demand — that part is addition — but the plan that gets there can be cheap, clean or reliable and rarely all three. Children practise multi-step sums and start weighing trade-offs, which is the beginning of real modelling.
How to play
- 1Read the city's demand in megawatts.
- 2Dial each energy source up or down until supply meets demand.
- 3Watch cost and pollution — the cheapest plan is rarely the cleanest one.
- 4The weather changes each round. Clouds cut solar, calm cuts wind. Rebalance and keep the lights on.
Frequently asked questions
- Is there always one correct answer?
- No, and that is deliberate. Many combinations meet demand; they differ in cost, pollution and reliability, so children learn to justify a choice rather than find the answer.
- What age is it for?
- Grade 2 upward. Younger children can play the demand-matching part, while Grade 4 and 5 handle the cost and pollution budgets.
- Does it teach science too?
- Yes — renewables versus fossil fuels, intermittency, storage and peak demand all appear as game mechanics rather than as text to read.
- Is it free?
- Yes, free and no signup.