Planning an EV Road Trip

On this tab you'll find all connections to the BC curriculum as well as our brief suggestions for assessment. 

Core competencies

Communication

• Connecting and engaging with others
• Acquiring and presenting information
• Working collectively and determining common purposes

Thinking

• Designing and developing
• Reflecting and assessing

Personal and Social

• Understanding and appreciating connections among people and the environment
• Focus on interacting with others and the natural world in respectful and caring ways

Grades 6-8 Math

Big ideas

• Computational fluency and flexibility with numbers extend to operations with whole numbers and decimals (6)
• Decimals, fractions, ratios, rates, and percent to represent parts and wholes of numbers (6-8)

Content

• Relationships between ratios, decimals, fractions, and percents (6-7)
• Numerical proportional reasoning (8)

Curricular competencies

Reasoning and analyzing

• Use reasoning and logic to explore, analyze, and apply mathematical ideas (6-8)
• Estimate reasonably (6-8)
• Model mathematics in contextualized experiences (6-8)

Understanding and solving

• Develop, demonstrate, and apply mathematical understanding through play, inquiry, and problem solving (6-8)
• Visualize to explore mathematical concepts (6-8)

Communicating and representing

• Explain and justify mathematical ideas and decisions (6-8)
• Communicate mathematical thinking in many ways (6-8)

Connecting and reflecting

• Reflect on mathematical thinking (6-8)
• Connect mathematical concepts to each other and to other areas and personal interests (6-8)

Grades 6-8 Science

Content

• Electricity is generated in different ways with different impacts to the environment (7)

Curricular competencies

Processing and analyzing data and information

• Experience and interpret the local environment (7-8)

Applying and innovating

• Contribute to car for self, others, community, and world through personal or collaborative approaches
• Co-operatively design projects

Grades 6-8 Social Studies

Content

• Human responses to particular geographic challenges and opportunities, including climates, landforms, and natural resources (7)
• Scientific and technological developments and innovations (7-8)

Grades 6-8 ADST

Curricular competencies

Applied Technologies

• Select, and as needed learn about, appropriate tools and technologies to extend their capabilities to complete a task (6-8)
• Identify the personal, social, and environmental impacts, including unintended negative consequences, of the choices they make about technology use (6-8)
• Identify how the land, natural resources, and culture influence the development and use of tools and technologies (6-8)

Assessments

• Consider assessing student's work against the sample rubric below:

These teaching notes contain more information on the following topics:

• Researching EV charging information
• EV charge types
• Charging speed and battery levels
• EV charge calculations
• Using padlet

For a more introductory explanation of what electric vehicles are and how they work, consider reviewing the first two activities in the "Investigating Electric Vehicles unit" and the teaching notes there. These teaching notes will mainly focus on information related to charging, as that is the primary topic explored in this activity.

Researching EV charging information

If students will be selecting and researching the EV charging information themselves, ensure that they are looking for the following:

• Battery capacity - How many kWh can the battery hold. 
• Driving range - The estimated maximum distance the EV can travel on a full charge under optimal conditions. There are many things that can impact the driving range and should be taken into account when driving. 
• Connector type - What type of charging connector their vehicle uses.

Because a lot of European EVs have connector types that we do not have available in North America, we recommend either providing students with a list of EVs to choose from before researching charging data (there is a list of cars with and without data on the optional handout for you to use as a resource), or restricting them to choosing an EV from a site like EVGrok and having them select a vehicle by brand. From there they can choose a specific car and see details such as the range (in miles, so they'd need to convert to km), the battery capacity, and connector type. 

EV charger types

Electric vehicles (EVs) charge at different speeds depending on the type of charger and the vehicle. Level 1 uses a standard household outlet and is the slowest—best for overnight charging. Level 2 uses 240V power (like a clothes dryer) and is common at homes, workplaces, and public locations; it adds range much faster and is the most widely used everyday charging home or workplace option. DC fast charging (Level 3) is found mostly along highways, major travel routes, and urban centers and can add a large amount of range in a short time, making it ideal for long-distance trips or top up's if drivers don't have access to charging at home.

Different EVs also use different charging connectors, which determine which chargers they can plug into. The J1772 connector is the North American standard for Level 1 and 2 charging and works for almost all EVs. For fast charging, most modern EVs in North America use CCS, while older Nissan Leafs use CHAdeMO, a standard that is now being phased out. Tesla vehicles use their own connector (often called the North American Charging Standard or NACS), though adapters allow compatibility in many cases. More non-Tesla EVs in North America are also switching to NACS ports. When students plan an EV road trip, understanding charging speeds and connector types helps them choose charging sites their vehicle can actually use—and highlights how EV infrastructure is continuing to evolve.

Charging speed and battery levels

Charging speed and battery levels in an electric vehicle depend on a combination of the charger type, the vehicle’s battery design, and how full the battery already is. Level 1 and Level 2 chargers use alternating current (AC), so the speed is limited by the vehicle’s onboard charger—essentially the hardware inside the car that converts AC to DC. DC fast chargers bypass this internal limitation by delivering direct current straight to the battery, allowing much faster charging. However, even at a fast charger, the vehicle determines the maximum power it can accept. Some EVs can draw very high power (like 100–250 kW), while others are capped at lower levels, which is why different cars charge at different speeds even at the same charger.

Battery levels also affect how quickly charging happens. EVs charge fastest when the battery is low, because the system can accept more power safely. As the battery fills—usually around 80% and above—the charging rate slows down intentionally to protect battery health and prevent overheating. Temperature plays a role too: cold batteries charge more slowly until they warm up, and many EVs pre-condition their battery before arriving at a fast charger to reach optimal temperature for charging. Together, these factors mean that charging speed is dynamic rather than constant, and you can help students understand that planning an EV trip involves matching the right charger to the right vehicle while accounting for how battery behavior changes as it fills.

EV charge calculations

In this activity, students use real charging‑station data to estimate how far an electric vehicle (EV) can travel, how much energy it will use, and how long it will take to charge during a trip. The calculations are intentionally simplified so students can focus on interpreting data and applying proportional reasoning instead of navigating the full complexity of EV battery science. For example, students estimate energy use using a vehicle’s efficiency rating (kWh per 100 km) and determine when a charging stop is needed by comparing route distance to the vehicle’s range. They also calculate how a battery’s state of charge changes as the vehicle travels and how much charge is needed to reach the next station safely. Charging time is estimated using the charger’s power rating (kW) and the vehicle’s maximum charging capability to help students understand that EVs charge at different speeds depending on both the charger and the car.

We calculate these values in simplified steps because real EV charging involves many variables—battery temperature, charging curves, regenerative braking, elevation changes, and vehicle‑specific software—that would be too advanced for this level of math and science learning. Instead, the activity focuses on the most important, predictable relationships: how distance relates to energy use, how charging speed relates to power (kW), and how battery percentage changes over time. These simplified models mirror the way EV drivers plan trips in the real world, giving students an authentic planning experience without overwhelming them with technical detail. This approach lets students practice meaningful, real‑life problem‑solving while building foundational understanding of how EV range and charging actually work.

Using padlet

This activity can be done using padlet in a variety of ways:

• A free personal account with a single map that everyone works on, each group a different pin colour (via share link, no student accounts needed)
  • Note that there are only 6 different pin colours, so you'd be restricted to 6 groups maximum working on the same map
  • You can also make up to 3 padlets at one time on a free account, so you could have up to 18 different groups working overall
• A paid personal account for the teacher who creates a different map padlet to share with each group (via share link, no student accounts needed)
• A paid classroom account, where the teacher can create set up student accounts who can create their own map padlets.

 Creating, editing, and sharing a map padlet: 

1. When signed in, click on the + to make a new padlet, scroll down, and select map from the recipes section (You might need to expand to show all)
2. To share with students, click on the share arrow and select the best method for your class (link or QR code)
3. Change the share permissions to allow visitors with the link to writer so that students can add their road trip stops. 
4. To add a new pin to the map, click on the + in the bottom right corner to select a location. Once the location is set, students can add their annotations with the required information at their chosen stop.