Website
Ducksters

Ducksters: Physics for Kids: Light Spectrum

For Students 1st - 9th
Kids learn about the science of the light spectrum. Wavelengths and frequencies of the electromagnetic waves including visible light, primary colors, and subtractive colors.
Unit Plan
Other

Tooter4kids: Light and Color

For Students Pre-K - 1st
You'll find a wealth of resources at this site dedicated to color! Easy-to-read discussions can be found on topics ranging from the science of light to complementary colors and the color wheel. All special terms are highlighted and...
Handout
NASA

Nasa: Tour of the Electromagnetic Spectrum: Visible Light

For Students 9th - 10th
Visible light waves are the only electromagnetic waves we can see. We see these waves as the colors of the rainbow. Each color has a different wavelength. Red has the longest wavelength and violet has the shortest wavelength. When all...
Unit Plan
Annenberg Foundation

Annenberg Learner: The Science of Light: Light in Color

For Students 9th - 10th
Site explores colors and how they are formed. Provides three different activities to explore color.
Handout
Science Struck

Science Struck: Wavelength of Visible Light Spectrum

For Students 9th - 10th
Explains where visible light fits into the electromagnetic spectrum and the wavelengths for the different colors we see.
Activity
Physics Central

Physics Central: Physics in the Snow: Snowy Colors

For Students 6th - 8th
A simple experiment through which students observe the connection between color and heat and prove that dark-colored objects and light-colored objects heat at different rates, even when exposed to the same heat or light source.
Interactive
Math Science Nucleus

Math/science Nucleus: Light Magic

For Students Pre-K - 1st
This animation discusses light and the properties of light in a storybook format. The animations cover the colors of the rainbow (ROYGBIV) along with prisms, light waves, reflection, and refraction.
PPT
Sophia Learning

Sophia: Light Waves: Lesson 4

For Students 9th - 10th
This lesson will introduce light waves and describe how a particle can travel as a photon or a wave. It is 4 of 4 in the series titled "Light Waves."
Handout
Science Struck

Science Struck: Color Spectrum Chart With Frequencies and Wavelengths

For Students 9th - 10th
Read about the visible light spectrum and learn the frequencies and wavelengths for each of the primary and secondary colors.
Activity
Utah Education Network

Uen: I'll Build You a Rainbow

For Teachers 3rd - 8th
In these three activities, students explore the colors of the spectrum in white light.
Interactive
CK-12 Foundation

Ck 12 Exploration Series: Simulations: Physics: Light Wave

For Students 9th - 10th
[Free Registration/Login Required] Are there colors we don't see? This simulation addresses that question by exploring light as an electromagnetic wave. Learn how the electromagnetic wave relates its wavelength and frequency to the...
Interactive
CK-12 Foundation

Ck 12: Chemistry Simulation: Neon Lights

For Students 9th - 10th
[Free Registration/Login Required] Neon lights are a type of discharge tube. Observe how electrons create colored light in a hydrogen gas discharge tube. Can you figure out why hydrogen's emission spectrum contains more than one color of...
Interactive
Physics Aviary

Physics Aviary: Em Spectrum Lab

For Students 9th - 10th
This lab is designed to allow students to look at the factors affecting the location of different colors formed by diffraction grating.
Lesson Plan
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: The Energy of Light

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
In this introduction to light energy, students learn about reflection and refraction as they learn that light travels in wave form. Through hands-on activities, they see how prisms, magnifying glasses and polarized lenses work. They also...
Activity
Science Buddies

Science Buddies: Absorption of Radiant Energy by Different Colors

For Students 6th - 8th
In this science fair project, use an infrared thermometer to measure the temperature of differently colored paper exposed to sunlight, and calculate energy emission using the Stefan-Boltzmann equation. Find discussion questions, a list...
Handout
Georgia State University

Georgia State University: Hyper Physics: Color

For Students 9th - 10th
This site from Georgia State University discusses the location of visible light on the electromagnetic spectrum. Includes the wavelength values for various colors of light within the visible light spectrum.
Activity
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: Rgb to Hex Conversion

For Teachers 11th - 12th
Students practice converting between RGB and hexadecimal (hex) formats. They learn about mixing primary colors in order to get the full spectrum of colors and how to average pixel values.
Unit Plan
University of Colorado

University of Colorado: Physics 2000: Temperature and Absolute Zero

For Students 9th - 10th
A thorough, multipage discussion of color and color television sets that explains how an image is formed on the television using red, green, and blue light. Understandable discussion, excellent graphics, and many interactive Java applets.
Handout
Science4Fun

Science4 Fun: Light

For Students K - 1st
What is light? Illustrated discussion of the speed of light, how we see colors, and how light helps us.
Activity
Optical Society

Optical Society of America: Optics for Kids: Release the Rainbow

For Students 3rd - 5th
A simple activity to demonstrate how light separates into colors when it passes through water acting as a prism.
Lesson Plan
Science Education Resource Center at Carleton College

Serc: Mn Step: Why Is the Sky Blue?

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Students will learn about refraction and the scattering of sunlight as it enters the atmosphere, which causes the colors in light to separate, giving us blue skies and colorful sunrises and sunsets.
Unit Plan
NumberNut

Number Nut: Light and Colors

For Students Pre-K - 1st
Discover the relationship between light and colors in this brief lesson. Links to related color identification activities, Color Memory Challenge and Identifying Colors Quiz. Immediate feedback given to responses that includes...
Website
NumberNut

Number Nut: Basic Topics: Shapes, Symbols, and Colors: Colors

For Students 3rd - 8th
A short explanation of how we see color and what each of the primary and secondary colors symbolize.
Unit Plan
NASA

Nasa: The Space Place: Why Is the Sky Blue?

For Students 5th - 8th
Learn about colors of light by exploring how prisms work. Discover the different colors of the spectrum and how the visible light is what we see.