Higher:
Explain how lenses manipulate light rates
Middle:
Describe how lenses can help us
Lower:
Give examples of different lenses
Higher:
Explain that light rays refract towards a focal point
Middle:
Describe that light enters a lens and bends towards a focal point
Lower:
Identify the focal point and focal length of a lens
Lesson Recap Starter: Think back to the last lesson. Why are transparent materials useful?
Lesson Starter: Make a list of objects that contain a lens. The longest list wins.
Discuss who might use the different types of lenses in their occupations and why? e.g.
Presentation - starter slide.
Answer questions throughout the presentation.
Talk Partners: Explain to your talk partner how a magnifying glass works and when it would be useful.
Key Concept:
During this unit, each lesson contains a key concept question housed in the '30 Second Challenge' slide. To help children master this content so the knowledge moves from their short term memory to their long term memory, at the beginning of the follow on lesson the question from the previous lesson is revisited.
The questions covered during this unit include:
1. How are shadows created? Why do shadows change during the day?
2. Why are transparent materials useful?
3. Provide three examples that explain the different uses of lenses.
4. What is white light?
5. Why does water bend light?
6. When is light colour mixing used in industry and how?
Presentation
Expert Film: Astro-photographer Shaun Reynolds talks about using a telescope to take images of distant galaxies. Discuss what Shaun does and why students think that he takes pictures of space?
How we deliver the Gatsby Benchmarks:
2 - Learning from career and labour market information: Pop along to Developing Experts career’s zone to find out about jobs in your area.
4 - Linking curriculum learning to careers: This unit showcases careers that relate to light. Access our 360° virtual work tours.
7 - Encounters with Further and Higher Education: Pop along to Developing Experts career’s zone to find out about training providers in your area.
Presentation - expert film slide.
Build a Refracting Telescope
This experiment works best under fluorescent strip lights
Pupils should then answer the questions on the Handout.
Build a Refracting Telescope
Quiz
With their talk partners, the children are to go through the quiz at the end of the presentation and answer the questions.
Children to take interactive Assessment Quiz to test lesson comprehension.
Quiz in presentation
Interactive quiz
What are lenses used for?
Do magnifying lenses make light spread out or point in?
Light entering a lens bends towards...
... the focal point
The Science Behind the Science
The speed of light in a vacuum is constant (300 million meters per second) but the speed of light is less than this value when light travels through denser media such as air, water, plastic and glass. Lenses change the direction of light based on the principle of refraction, where light changes direction in relation to how its speed changes when travelling from one transparent medium to another. A material's refractive index is a measure of how much the material slows down the speed of light compared to the speed of light in a vacuum.
Lenses come in two main varieties: convex and concave. Convex lenses have bulging outer surfaces that can bend parallel rays of light inwards to focus them on to a particular point (known as the focal point). They can be found in binoculars and telescopes. On the other hand, the outer surfaces of concave lenses curve inwards and can bend parallel rays of light outwards to disperse them. They can be found in television projects to spread out light rays.
Recognise that light appears to travel in straight lines; use the idea that light travels in straight lines to explain that objects are seen because they give out or reflect light into the eye; explain that we see things because light travels from light sources to our eyes or from light sources to objects and then to our eyes
Identifying scientific evidence that has been used to support or refute ideas or arguments.
Grade 6 Light, Shadows and Reflection
Grade 5 - Physical Science - Energy and Forces - Sound and Light - Light - How does light bounce and bend? (refraction of light, lenses)
knows that light from the light source or reflected light from the object enters the eye & can make us see the light source or the object knows that when the moving light encounters an object the reflection phenomenon will occur & the direction of light propagation will change knows that light travels in a straight line in the air
