Florida SC.3.P.10.4

Science3rd GradeForms of Energy

The Standard

Demonstrate that light can be reflected, refracted, and absorbed.

Florida Next Generation Sunshine State Standards for Science

Teacher's field guide

What Students Need to Do: Students use simple materials to observe what happens when light strikes different objects or moves between air and water. They identify whether light bounces, bends, or is taken in by a material.
What Mastery Looks Like: Students can set up and explain a clear example of each light behavior. They use observations, such as a redirected beam or a shifted image, as evidence.
Common Misconceptions: Students may think light bounces only from mirrors or that a straw in water is actually bent. They may also think dark materials destroy light rather than absorb its energy.
How to Assess It: Show students pictures of a mirror beam, a straw in water, and light hitting black paper. Ask them to label each behavior and explain one choice.

Lesson moves

Set up stations with a flashlight, mirror, clear cup of water, white paper, and black paper to observe how each material affects light.
Ask students to write why a pencil looks bent in water even though it remains straight.
Play a card sort using pictures of mirrors, prisms, dark shirts, windows, and water, grouping each by light behavior.
Compare a white shirt and black shirt in sunlight, then discuss why one usually feels warmer.

Free download

A ready-to-print activity worksheet aligned to SC.3.P.10.4, with an answer key for the teacher on its own page. No account needed.

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