Grade level: 4th – 6th grades

Skills: Bar graphs 

Related environmental issues: Climate Change

The United States depends on coal for electricity generation. When burned, coal emits carbon dioxide (CO2).  Reducing the use of coal helps a lot to reduce CO2 emissions from the nation.  The bar graph below shows the amount of electricity the United States generated from burning coal over the last 10 years.

1. In what year did the United States generate the largest amount of electricity from coal?
2. In what year did the United States generate as much electricity from coal as that in 2011?
3. In what year did the United States generate the least amount of electricity from coal?
4. How did the amount of electricity generated from coal change since 2009? Explain.
5. Do you think the United States could reduce the amount of CO2 emissions since 2009? Why?

Sources: U.S. Energy Information Administration, 2019. Electric Power Monthly, Table 1.1 Net Generation by Energy Source.

Photo: Carbon Tracker