Light and Shadows - Lesson 3 | Shadow Casting

Downloadable (1 PDF - 29 pages)

The Shadow Casting activity can also be found within the Light and Shadows - Let's Do Science Bundle. If you are interested in purchasing this activity and more, you can check out the Light and Shadows bundle here.

Ideal for grades 4-5, 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.

By the end of the activity students should be able to:

• Understand how shadows are formed
• Understand how light position can affect shadow size
• Predict changes in size and position of the shadow resulting from moving the light source
• Understand how the position of the object can affect shadow size

Additional resources included with the activity plan:

• Background information with hypothesis
• Student worksheet
• Shadow casting game instructions (1 per group)
• Shadow casting game board (1 per group)
• Shadow casting game cards (1 set per group)
• Example card
• 3 training cards
• 12 game cards
• 3 bonus cards

Additional resources required:

• Flashlight (1 per group)
• 3 opaque objects (cube, sphere and pyramid) (1 set per group)
• White screen (can be created by using a textbook, folder, etc.) (1 per group)