Grade 1
Unit 5: Shine A Light!
essential question: What do we want to shine a light on?
Project Description:
The Shine a Light project engages students in physical science explorations of light. Students explore what light does, where it comes from, and what happens when we shine light on different materials. Students work in teams and become actors, lighting designers, cinematographers, and directors as they create a shadow puppet show to showcase their year in first grade as curious, creative, changemakers.
next generation science standards
Performance Expectations
1-PS4-2. Make observations to construct an evidence-based account that objects can be seen only when illuminated. [Clarification Statement: Examples of observations could include those made in a completely dark room, a pinhole box, and a video of a cave explorer with a flashlight. Illumination could be from an external light source or by an object giving off its own light.]
1-PS4-3. Plan and conduct an investigation to determine the effect of placing objects made with different materials in the path of a beam of light. [Clarification Statement: Examples of materials could include those that are transparent (such as clear plastic), translucent (such as wax paper), opaque (such as cardboard), and reflective (such as a mirror).] [Assessment Boundary: Assessment does not include the speed of light.]
2020-2021 ONLINE Learning Resources
The Shine a Light project was revised for online learning in 2020. The Calendar and Resources Slides were adjusted, however lesson scripts were not revised.
2019-2020 Curriculum
The Shine a Light project was first written in 2019 with the essential question, "How does light help us?" The project integrated Vision Zero and pedestrian safety. Click the links below to access the resources.
Revised by Lacy Szuwalski in 2022.
Created by: Lacy Szuwalski and Zoë Randall with contributions from the Instructional Technology Team
(Lauren Leathers, Cheryl Steinemann, Derek Suzuki) and Theatre Resource Teacher, Marjorie Treger.