Light!... Transparent, Translucent, and Opaque!

Third grade has been learning a lot about the properties or light and sources of light. Students are investigating different items that are transparent, translucent, and opaque… and we are making observations to see if light will pass through certain test materials. We know that if an item is transparent, light is able to pass through clearly. If an item is translucent, the light is blurry and scattered. An opaque item completely blocks light. Today in lab, third graders began by making predictions about a list of test items. We followed the scientific method by beginning with a prediction of whether each item was transparent, translucent, or opaque. Next we conducted an experiment while turning off one of the room lights and using a flash light. We used the flashlight to shine on each test material to investigate and find results. It was surprising to conclude that some of the items were in fact translucent rather than the expected opaque. The Styrofoam plate was a surprise for sure! Learning more about light in our lab through hands on investigation is fun!