📖 Chapter 3 of 9 · Green Energy - Basic 1 · Class 5–6
Chapter 3: Power from the Wind
How does wind make power?
Wind is moving air. When it blows against the big blades of a wind turbine, the blades spin round and round. That spinning makes electricity — clean power, with no smoke.
Where do we put wind turbines?
We build wind turbines where the wind blows strong and often — on open hills, along coasts, and in wide flat places. India has many great wind farms, with rows of tall white turbines turning together.
Story Time — The Giant Fans on the Hill
Nisha · near Kanyakumari, Tamil Nadu
On a windy hillside near the coast, Nisha saw a row of tall white towers with huge spinning blades. “They look like giant fans!” she said. But her uncle shook his head with a smile. “A fan uses power to make wind. These do the opposite — they use the wind to make power.”
Nisha watched the great blades turn slowly and steadily in the strong sea breeze. “The wind pushes the blades,” her uncle said, “the blades spin, and inside the tower that spinning becomes electricity.”
“So the wind gives us power for free, like the Sun?” Nisha asked. “Just like the Sun,” her uncle said. “And with no smoke. This whole hillside of turbines makes enough clean power for many, many homes.”
A strong gust blew Nisha's hair across her face, and at the same moment the blades sped up. “They spin faster when the wind is stronger!” she noticed. “Exactly,” said her uncle. “Stronger wind, more power. That is why we build them where the wind loves to blow.”
Nisha stood a long while, watching the giant blades sweep the sky, turning the invisible wind into light for people's homes. “The wind is working for us,” she said, “and we cannot even see it.” Her uncle nodded. “The best kind of helper.”
Story Time — The Kite and the Turbine
Arjun · Ahmedabad, Gujarat
Arjun loved flying kites, and he was very good at it. On a breezy afternoon, his kite soared high while, far behind it, a big wind turbine turned on the edge of the city. His friend asked, “Why do you always fly your kite on windy days?”
“Because the wind holds it up,” Arjun said. Then he paused, looking from his kite to the spinning turbine. “The same wind that lifts my kite... is turning that turbine to make electricity.”
His grandmother, sitting nearby, was pleased. “You have understood something important, Arjun. The wind is not just for play — it is a worker. It lifts your kite and, over there, it makes clean power for the city.”
“So when there is no wind...” Arjun began. “Your kite will not fly,” his grandmother finished, “and the turbine will not turn. Both need the wind. That is why we build turbines in windy places, so they can work as often as possible.”
Arjun felt a new friendship with the wind he had always loved. As his kite danced and the far turbine spun, he grinned. “The wind is playing with me and working at the same time.” It was, he decided, the most useful playmate in the world.
Solved Examples
Think first, then read the answer.
1. How does a wind turbine make power?
Show answer
Answer: The wind spins its big blades, and that spinning is turned into electricity inside the tower.
2. Is wind power clean?
Show answer
Answer: Yes — it makes no smoke, just like solar power.
3. When does a turbine make more power?
Show answer
Answer: When the wind blows stronger, the blades spin faster and make more power.
4. Where do we build wind turbines?
Show answer
Answer: In windy places — open hills, coasts and wide flat lands.
5. How is a turbine different from a fan?
Show answer
Answer: A fan uses power to make wind; a turbine uses wind to make power — the opposite.
Check Your Understanding
A. Fill in the blanks
- Wind is moving _______.
- The wind spins the turbine's _______.
- Stronger wind makes _______ power.
B. Yes or No
- A turbine uses wind to make power. ( ___ )
- Turbines make smoke. ( ___ )
- We build turbines in windy places. ( ___ )
C. Talk about it
- Have you felt a strong wind? What did it move?
- Why is a windy hill a good place for turbines?
Check your understanding
Tap an answer to see if it is correct. This is just for fun — nothing is saved.
1. What spins a wind turbine?
- The wind
- A battery
- The Moon
Show answer
A. The wind
2. When does a turbine make more power?
- Stronger wind
- No wind
- At night only
Show answer
A. Stronger wind
3. How is a turbine different from a fan?
- No difference
- Turbine uses wind to make power
- It is smaller
Show answer
B. Turbine uses wind to make power