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PPT
Curated OER

How Do You Light Up Your World?

For Teachers 4th - 6th
A tremendous presentation on the properties of light. Young scientists are treated to slides which share a lot of fascinating information about light. This impressive PowerPoint is filled with great photos, graphics, and discussion...
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Activity
Curated OER

Lesson 3 - Lighting Design

For Students 6th - 12th Standards
The final lesson in a series on theatre design spotlights how lighting is incorporated into a production. After watching videos that focus on lighting fixtures and their positioning, individuals create a basic design plan for a scene,...
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Lesson Plan
National Gallery of Canada

The Camera Obscura

For Teachers 7th - 9th
You can create a camera with even the most unassuming materials. Learners view photographs and talk about the art. Some background information is included about the camera obscura for you to present before individuals make their own...
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Lesson Plan
National Gallery of Canada

Shadow Chasers!

For Teachers 4th - 6th
Experiment with light and shadow with a photography lesson. Learners first view several artistic photographs. They then play with different levels of light and various objects, eventually putting together compositions and taking pictures...
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Lesson Plan
National Gallery of Canada

Make a Pinhole Camera

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Introduce your class to photography by asking them to construct their own pinhole cameras. After putting together their own devices, pupils take and develop pictures and analyze the results. The plan provides step-by-step instructions...
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Lesson Plan
National Gallery of Canada

Surprising Sun Prints

For Teachers K - 3rd
Here comes the sun! Composition, shapes, and the properties of light are the focus of this bright lesson. Class members examine art and then create sun prints using photosensitive paper and various objects of different shapes and sizes....
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Worksheet
Curated OER

How Light Can "Bend"

For Students 4th - 6th
Examine the properties of light with a fifth grade science experiment. Pupils find out how light bounces off the surface of a mirror, as well as how a periscope works. For the science investigation part, kids build their own periscope...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Shadows & Light, Science & Puppetry

For Teachers 5th - 8th
Lights, shadows, action, and inquiry await your artistic scientists. They explore the way light travels, absorbs, reflects, and transmits through shadow play. They create folktale-inspired shadow puppets, explore the science of light,...
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Lesson Plan
Alabama Learning Exchange

Light Is

For Teachers 5th - 8th Standards
Students explore the properties of light. In this light lesson, students investigate visible light by viewing a website, examining an electromagnetic spectrum chart, and observing light demonstrations. Students write about their...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Reflect and Refract

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Students explore light. In this properties of light lesson, students define the terms refract, reflect, and diffract after listening to the teacher's description. Students listen to the book Light Magic and observe a spoon in a glass of...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Light

For Teachers 4th - 6th
Students examine how light waves travel. In this properties of light lesson, students observe how light travels in water, how light is reflected and refracted, and how light is pure energy.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

How to Make a Kaleidoscope

For Teachers 6th
Sixth graders create a kaleidoscope.  In this light refraction lesson, 6th graders create a kaleidoscope to investigate the properties of light.
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Activity
National Geographic

National Geographic: Seeing Is Believing

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
In this lesson, students investigate the properties of light using simple materials. Includes handout and video resources.
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Activity
Exploratorium

Exploratorium: Science Snacks: Physics/light

For Students 9th - 10th
Here is a large collection of simple science class activities for understanding the physics of light.
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Activity
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: Stations of Light

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Student groups rotate through four stations to examine light energy behavior: refraction, magnification, prisms and polarization. They see how a beam of light is refracted (bent) through various transparent mediums. While learning how a...
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Activity
Optical Society

Optical Society of America: Exploring the Science of Light: Easy Activities

For Students Pre-K - 1st
A collection of simple experiments for exploring the basic properties of light and color.
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Activity
Optical Society

Optical Society of America: Exploring Science of Light: Intermediate Activities

For Students 9th - 10th
A collection of intermediate experiments, for students aged ten and up, for exploring the magnification, reflection, and refraction of light.
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Activity
Optical Society

Optical Society of America: Exploring the Science of Light: What Is Optics?

For Students 9th - 10th
A collection of tutorials and interactive resources, from basic to advanced, that explain concepts related to the science of light.
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Activity
Exploratorium

Exploratorium: Pinhole Magnifier

For Teachers 9th - 10th
For elementary students, this would be a great demonstration on properties of light and optics. For middle school and high school, this would be a great start to a lab but needs experimentation. Site by Exploratorium.
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Unit Plan
Scholastic

Scholastic: Study Jams! Science: Light Absorption, Reflection, & Refraction

For Students 3rd - 7th
A video and a short quiz on the properties of light.
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Unit Plan
E-learning for Kids

E Learning for Kids: Science: Denmark: What Are Light and Darkness?

For Students 1st - 3rd
In this module, students learn about the different sources of light, what causes darkness, and about shadows.
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Website
Optical Society

Optical Society of America: Optics for Kids: Exploring the Science of Light

For Students 9th - 10th
A collection of information on the science of light and optics. Features a wide variety of resources: key events in history, reference materials, multimedia links, optical illusion activities, glossary of optics terms, and information on...
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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.
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Handout
CK-12 Foundation

Ck 12: First Grade Science: How Do I See?

For Students 1st
[Free Registration/Login may be required to access all resource tools.] Explores sources and properties of light and its effect on seeing.