Georgia S2E2.b
The Standard
Design and build a structure that demonstrates how shadows change throughout the day.
Georgia Standards of Excellence for Science · Obtain, evaluate, and communicate information to develop an understanding of the patterns of the sun and the moon and the sun's effect on Earth.
Teacher's field guide
What This Standard Means
What Students Need to Do
- Students plan and build a simple model with a fixed object that casts a visible shadow. They use sunlight or a flashlight to show how the shadow's length and direction change as the light moves.
What Mastery Looks Like
- Students keep the model object still and move only the light source. They show longer shadows when the light is low, shorter shadows when it is high, and shadows pointing away from the light.
Common Misconceptions
- Students may think the object must move for its shadow to change. They may also think shadows point toward the light or disappear completely at noon.
How to Assess It
- Give each student a craft stick, clay, flashlight, and paper. Ask them to model morning, noon, and afternoon, then label each shadow's length and direction.
Lesson moves
Ways to Teach It
Anchor a craft stick in clay on poster board, trace its outdoor shadow at three times, then compare the traced lengths and directions.
Ask students to write: Why is a flagpole's shadow longer in the morning than near noon, and which way does it point?
Play Shadow Match with cards showing light positions and shadow shapes, and have teams pair each light card with its matching shadow.
Measure the playground basketball pole's shadow before lunch and after lunch, then discuss how a sundial uses the same pattern.
Free download
Printable S2E2.b Worksheet
A ready-to-print activity worksheet aligned to S2E2.b, with an answer key for the teacher on its own page. No account needed.
PDF, US Letter, prints cleanly in black and white.
Download the worksheetKeep exploring
Related Standards
- S1P1.c
Plan and carry out an investigation of shadows by placing objects at various points from a source of light.
- S4E2.a
Develop a model to support an explanation of why the length of day and night change throughout the year.
- SKE1.b
Develop a model to communicate the changes that occur in the sky during the day, as day turns into night, during the night, and as night turns into day using pi...
- S3P1.c
Use tools and every day materials to design and construct a device/structure that will increase/decrease the warming effects of sunlight on various materials.
Turn this exact standard into a lesson
Grade, subject, topic, and the complete standard are prefilled. Create one free, no account needed.
Also for this standard:Make a WorksheetMake a QuizMake a Sub Lesson