Texas schoolyards can get really hot when the sun beats down on those tree-starved fields.

Now, thanks to a donation by TXU Energy, schools can put that solar heat to a better use. The retail electricity unit of Energy Future Holdings is donating solar panels to several Texas schools to accompany a new energy curriculum.

The solar panels will generate electricity for the schools and allow students to experiment with solar energy.

Cleburne High School got the first panel, and its students can now follow how much electricity the panel makes at www.txu.com/solaracademy.

Of course, TXU has an interest in young Texans understanding energy. But the company didn't come up with the curriculum.

The material comes from the National Energy Education Development project, a group sponsored by energy companies including TXU, Shell Energy, Saudi Aramco, Halliburton Co. and American Electric Power, along with some states and the federal government.

The companies aren't allowed to write the curriculum, though, said Mary Spruill, National Energy Education Development's executive director. The handouts, coloring pages and science fair projects are put together by a team of educators.