RAYMOND - Students in Chris Aylward’s fourth-grade class at Lamprey River Elementary School spent last Tuesday learning about energy and touring the school to identify where energy can be saved.

The program, Energy UUUU, stands for "We Understand it’s Up to Us to Use energy wisely," and its purpose is to teach students the importance of energy through activities that help them understand energy principles.

Past classes participating in the program have created a presentation on how the school can conserve energy and presented it to the principal. But this year, there wasn’t enough in the wasted energy report to facilitate an entire presentation.

Aylward said Energy UUUU instructor Tom Poland began with a lesson on how energy works then showed the students how energy can be conserved. He also touched on the need to find alternative sources of energy because of limited fossil fuels.

"We’re trying to get kids to be aware we all have to save energy," said Aylward. "It’s not just adults that have to conserve, it’s kids too."

A tour of the building brought students to places they had never seen before, like the furnace and the boiler room, where they were told how the building runs on energy. They also learned the importance of turning lights off when leaving a room and closing doors to conserve heat.

Aylward said one of the activities had the children pick up every piece of scrap paper, which represented energy, in the room. After they returned, Poland told them to go find more energy to show them the limits of fossil fuels.

"I thought it was very good," said Aylward. "The kids were very interested, they enjoyed the activities and learned a lot."

The program was provided by Wilson Educational Services, Inc. of Meriden, Conn., which creates programs for students that develops math and science skills through study of energy use in their schools.

Principal Jane LaCasse said she always welcomes the program to the school because of the success they’ve had with it.

"This is one of the best projects we bring to the school because the kids do such hands-on activities, and they really understand what they’re doing," said LaCasse.