Curated OER
Electromagnetic and Physical Waves
Students compare and contrast electromagnetic and physical waves. In this wave lesson, students discover that all waves reflect, refract, and diffract energy. Students work in small groups to experiment with waves and evaluate the type...
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Light
Light is such a fascinating subject. This lesson does a great job of illuminating the mysteries of light for your young scientists. A series of demonstrations which are explained in the plan should help your charges to understand how...
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Light Reflections
Students explore light. In this physical science light lesson, students display objects on a projection screen and investigate how light absorbs, refracts, transmits and reflects. Students discuss common features of light based on...
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Fish Tank Optics- Learning How Light Travels
Students explore light waves, refraction, and reflection. In this light lesson, students observe how light moves by using a flashlight. Students observe refraction and reflection.
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Super Gelatin
High schoolers investigate the refraction properties of gelatin to calculate its index of refraction. They discover that as the light travels through the gelatin, its speed and wavelength also change. Students find th indes of refraction...
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The Color Spectrum: How Does it Work?
Create models of the infrared, visible, and ultraviolet portions of the electromagnetic spectrum. Working in small groups, your class can investigate metric conversions calculations. They will find the length of the waves in nanometers,...
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Geometrical Optics: Reflection and Refraction of Light
Students define and discus the concepts of wave fronts and rays. In groups, they distinguish between specular and diffuse reflections and use Snell's Law to predict the path of light rays. They calculate the speed of light through...
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Light
Students examine how light waves travel. For 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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Properties and Behavior of Waves
Students explore the different properties of waves. In this physics lesson, students differentiate mechanical and electromagnetic waves. They explore each lab station and write their observation about the wave behavior they see.
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Wave Types and Characteristics
Ninth graders identify the different parts of a wave. In this physics instructional activity, 9th graders observe wave behavior as it travels through a boundary. They determine the relationship between wavelength, frequency and...
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Waves: Understanding the Motion of Waves
Young scholars demonstrate the motion of waves. In this wave lesson, students demonstrate the various attributes to waves and the properties through a variety of hands-on activities.
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Physics: Light and Sound
Students explore the concepts of light waves and sound waves. In this physics lesson, students complete activities that require them to investigate how light and sound waves travel.
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Frozen Film
Students are introduced to the topic of light interference through this hands-on activity. They observe how light reflects off two surfaces and then meets to form an interesting variation of color on a film surface.
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Waves, Sound, and Light
Ninth graders explain waves in terms of energy transfer and describe their basic types and characteristics. They solve mathematical problems involving wavelength and frequency. Students conduct experiments in reflection and refraction.
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Jell-O Optics
Students observe an activity with Jell-O to learn about optics. In this investigative lesson students fill out a handout on the activity that helps them to investigate the index of refraction and the speed of light.
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Physical Optics: The Wave Nature of Light
Students are introduced to the wave nature of light. In groups, they discuss Young's experiment and how diffraction and interference demonstrate the wave nature of light. Using examples, they show constructive and destructive...
National Nanotechnology Infrastructure Network
Jell-O® Waveguide and Power Loss
Jell-O® can help model the transmission of light through fiber optic cables. Young scientists use the jiggly dessert to make a waveguide to transmit a laser beam from one point to another. Their models help them learn the function...
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The Space Cadet's Laboratory: Using Electromagnetic Energy to Study Astronomy
Students build their own spectrophotometer to study light. In this physics lesson, students explain the dual nature of light. They calculate the angle of incidence and refraction using Snell's law equation.
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Gallery Walk Questions on Earth's Radiation Balance
Questions that can be used in a lesson on Earth's radiation balance are suggested in this resource. It is not a lesson plan, per se, but it is a list of questions for stations within a "Gallery Walk" lesson. The link to how Gallery Walks...
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Frozen Film
Students discover how light reflects off surfaces. In this hands-on demonstration, students examine how variations in color are produced by light interference.
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Fish Tank Optics: Learning How Light Travels
Students examine light waves and see how they travel. They explain that light moves in waves, which can bounce off of or go through materials. They use a flashlight to shine on a variety of objects.
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Sky Show
Students participate in a discussion of the sky and colors. They watch a demonstration of how colors can change. They examine the issue of if weather should be a part of their coursework.
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What Role Does Light Play Within the Vision Process?
Pupils are introduced to the relationship between light and vision. In groups, they participate in experiments to discover how different wavelengths are divided in the visible spectrum. They record their answers and discuss their...
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Water Quality
Students analyze water quality and turbidity of collected samples. In this physics lesson plan, students conduct tests to identify the suspended particles in the samples. They explain how human activities affect water quality.