Synopsis: This curriculum unit provides appropriate level background knowledge for a Third Grade teacher to facilitate students as they explore the ‘big idea’ of “How do plants respond to light?” Students will explore our biggest source of light energy, the sun and some of the properties of light energy in a series of labs. The outcome of this unit is to help students identify and explain the basic properties of solar energy and how it can be used by plants and humans. Students will observe changes in different materials as they interact with light and discuss their observations with their peers and the class in a seminar style discussion. They will learn how light energy is a beam that can be transferred from the sun to a collector – such as a plant. Students will also explore how light can be collected from different angles and study cause and effect scenarios to note differences in how matter will respond to light. Students will experiment with how a solar panel collects light and uses it for energy. Finally, they will use the data and observations collected in the labs to draw conclusions about how the sun’s light can be used for energy.