Downloadable (1 PDF - 116 pages) The following activities are included in this guide. The list is not prescriptive and teachers may select activities that are most appropriate for their students. Activity Overview Resources Included Additional Resources Required Lesson: Introduction The opening lesson introduces students to Leonardo Da Vinci as an engineer, scientist, and architect, and highlights his work with light and shadows. Students will understand some of the engineering feats accomplished by Da Vinci and be introduced to key concepts for light and shadow. Lesson plan Leonardo Da Vinci poster Vocabulary cards Smartboard or projector Chart paper and markers Plain letter sized paper Pencils and/or pencil crayons for each student Lesson: Sun Shadows Students will investigate if Leonardo Da Vinci’s Hypothesis about shadows being longer in the morning and evening and shorter at noon when the sun is at its highest point of the day, was correct. Students will examine how the shadow cast by the sun and an opaque object changes over the course of a day by measuring and graphing their results. Lesson plan Background information with hypothesis Half oval template with student instructions Student worksheet and key One rectangle eraser per group One ruler per group One flashlight per group Lesson: Shadow Casting Let’s find out if Leonardo Da Vinci’s Hypothesis about the effect of light distance from an opaque object on shadow size, was correct. Students will experiment with different locations and distance for a light source and an opaque object to recreate a shadow. They will learn how to change the size and shape of the cast shadow. Lesson plan Background information with hypothesis Shadow casting game instructions Shadow casting game board Student worksheet and key Shadow casting game cards: • Example card • 3 training cards • 12 game cards • 3 bonus cards One flashlight per group Three opaque objects per group (cube, sphere and pyramid) One white screen per group (can be created by using a textbook, folder, etc.) Lesson: Refraction Find out if Leonardo Da Vinci’s Hypothesis about seeing objects out of place under water, was correct. Students will use various shaped glass pieces as well as different media (air and water) to understand the basic principles of bending of light. Lesson plan Background information with hypothesis Refraction mat Refraction grid Instructions Student worksheet and key One square piece of glass per group One convex glass per group One concave glass per group One glass container filled with water per group One empty glass container per group One flashlight per group One white screen per group (can be created by using a textbook, folder, etc.) Lesson: Optical Devices Let’s find out if Leonardo Da Vinci’s Hypothesis about pin-hole cameras was correct. Meanwhile, learning how it and other optical devices work. Students will learn how lenses can be used to create optical devices with different functions by examining a microscope and telescope. Students can then make their own optical devices using different lenses. Lesson plan Background information Instructions Small eye chart Large eye chart Student worksheet and key Microscope Telescope Convex lenses Concave lenses Lesson: Amazing Liquid Light Watch as light appears to bend in this optics experiment. Here, students learn that light isn’t really bending. The stream of water acts like a tube lined with mirrors on the inside (the technical name is total internal reflection) and the light is bounced back and forth, remaining within the stream of water. This mimics how a fiber optic cable works - light travels down a glass tube that is surrounded by a jacket (called cladding) which is one continuous, inward facing mirror. Since light only travels in straight lines and cables need to turn and bend, this ensures that the signal is always transmitted. Lesson plan Experiment outline Student reflection worksheet One tall glass jar with screw on lid per group Hammer One large nail One small nail One flashlight per group Duct tape Newspaper Water Sink or container Lesson: Aim for the X In this exploration, students will use their understanding and knowledge about light, reflection, refraction and absorption of light on different surfaces. Students will apply their knowledge by guiding a ray of light to a specific target. Lesson plan One pair of scissors 30+ pieces of glass (glasses with different thicknesses, curves, opacity etc.) • Another option: including glasses with various liquids inside of them for light to travel through (such as pure water, salt water, etc.) 30+ mirrors with smooth and rough surfaces One roll of red tape, or a sticker of a target One package of modeling clay One laser pointer or flashlight per group Lesson: My Shadow and Me In this lesson students will use their body to create a shadow, and try to capture an object in it. Try this at different times of the day to find out how the sun’s position effects shadow creation and when it’s easiest to capture the object. Lesson plan One marble per student A tarmac area outdoors Sunny day Pencil and paper Lesson: Patterns in the Sky Students will observe the sun, describe its pattern of movement through the sky, and relate it to the length of shadows created. Lesson plan Sunny day Pencils and paper Globe Flashlight Lesson: Light Fixture In this STEAM lesson, students will take on the role of a design engineer in developing a functional & creative lighting fixture for the city’s new public transit station. The project involves the iterative design of a prototype that provides a mixture of direct and indirect light for illuminating the station platform in an artistic way. Students will apply their knowledge of light manipulation elements such as lens, mirrors and materials to develop their prototype. Lesson plan Project instructions/rubric Smile challenge diagram Light are challenge diagram Computer and Smartboard or projecting device with internet access Assortment of light manipulation elements: • Lenses - concave and convex • Mirrors • Refraction materials • Prisms General construction supplies: • Paper, tissue paper • Tin foil • Cardboard • Tape • Scissors Experiment: Human Sundial Long before iWatches and smart phones, people used sundials to tell the time. In this hands-on activity, students turn into a large sundial. Learn how light and shadows can be a source of information - and maybe you won’t need a watch anymore! Experiment details Chalk Space for activity
