Category Archives: Vol 3: Understanding the Science of Light

2022 Vol 3: Understanding the Science of Light

Optical Illusions: Rainbows and Mirages 

April 19, 2025 – 9:13 am

Vashti Mosby, Science, Northridge Middle School

Curriculum Unit (PDF)

Click on the arrow to read the Synopsis.


Synopsis: This curriculum unit will make a significant contribution by exploring how optical illusions teach us about how our eyes and brain work together to see. We live in a three-dimensional world, your brain gets clues about depth, shading, lighting and position to help you interpret what you see. When you look at a two-dimensional image, your brain can be fooled because it doesn’t get the same clues. Optical illusions are extremely important for everyday life, people use them for jobs such as pilots, fashion designers, architects and landscapers. Optical illusions also known as visual illusions involve visual deception. The arrangement of images, effect of colors, and impact of the light source all contribute to the misleading nature of visual effects. When we view a visual illusion, we may see something that is not there or sometimes we do not see something that is there. There is a disconnect between perception and reality. Visual illusions prove that the brain could fail to re-create the physical world. Illusions are also explained as mind games. Scientists are fascinated by illusions because by figuring out how the eye and brain can be tricked; they can better understand the normal workings of the visual system. 

Tags , , , , , | Permalink | Comments Off on Optical Illusions: Rainbows and Mirages 
2022 Vol 3: Understanding the Science of Light

Light Time Travel and The Evolution of our Understanding of Light 

April 19, 2025 – 9:11 am

Seon Sloley, Science, Parker Academic Center

Curriculum Unit (PDF)

Click on the arrow to read the Synopsis.


Synopsis: Have you ever wondered where light actually comes from apart from the sun and moon? Many students are curious to know how light evolved and what changes have occurred over decades for us to be where we are today with light. This unit will focus on integrating Language Arts, Mathematics, Art and Research with the Science Curriculum to bring this topic to life. Through experiments, research, discussion, videos, and reading materials, students will garner valuable information on the evolution, and the history of light. The use of comprehension skills, the inquiry method, research method, and critical thinking skills, will be used to assist students in better understanding all concepts taught in this unit. The main focus of this unit is to allow students to work cooperatively through research, experiments, and group work while using their critical thinking skills to answer questions and solve problems. Students will be assisted and monitored by a Science teacher. The lessons will allow students to explore on their own and with other peers. 

Tags , , , , , , , | Permalink | Comments Off on Light Time Travel and The Evolution of our Understanding of Light 
2022 Vol 3: Understanding the Science of Light

 “Plants – Having a Light Lunch”: Understanding the Science of Light

April 19, 2025 – 9:08 am

Karyn Hays, 3rd Grade, Davidson K-8 School

Curriculum Unit (PDF)

Click on the arrow to read the Synopsis.

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. 

Tags , , , , , , , , , , | Permalink | Comments Off on  “Plants – Having a Light Lunch”: Understanding the Science of Light
2022 Vol 3: Understanding the Science of Light

 Shining a Light on Evidence 

April 19, 2025 – 9:06 am

Jackie Smith, Forensic Science, Hough High School

Curriculum Unit (PDF)

Click on the arrow to read the Synopsis.


Synopsis: This unit looks at the visible and infrared sections of the electromagnetic spectrum and their use in detecting latent evidence at crime scenes and testing it in the lab. Visible light is used in a type of spectroscopy which can identify an unknown substance and determine its concentration. Infrared light can be used to visualize hard to see evidence like blood and gunshot residue on dark colored clothing. Further, that evidence can be photographed with an IR sensitive camera and preserved for later investigative use. After discussing the science of light, this curriculum unit introduces the reader to several labs that can be done in the high school classroom to reinforce these concepts. 

Tags , , , , , , , , , , , , | Permalink | Comments Off on  Shining a Light on Evidence 
2022 Vol 3: Understanding the Science of Light

Light, Light It’s Bright!

April 19, 2025 – 9:03 am

Genitia Johnson, 1st Grade, Huntingtowne Farms Elementary School

Curriculum Unit (PDF)

Click on the arrow to read the Synopsis.


Synopsis: In this unit students will learn how light helps plants to grow. They learn science vocabulary words and explore photosynthesis. Students will learn how to grow a plant. They will write and draw about their observations. Students will learn about the importance of light while reading nonfiction stories. They will also learn nonfiction text features. The lessons will also include movement, music, gestures, and hands-on experiences. I am also writing this unit for students who are learning English as a second language and in the Dual Language Program. This unit will provide them with basic science vocabulary words by using visuals and gestures. This unit will integrate science, literacy, writing, and learning English as a second language. 

Tags , , | Permalink | Comments Off on Light, Light It’s Bright!
2022 Vol 3: Understanding the Science of Light

Light Up the Stage

April 19, 2025 – 9:01 am

Debbie Gresham, Dance, Bradley Middle School

Curriculum Unit (PDF)

Click on the arrow to read the Synopsis.

Synopsis: This curriculum unit focuses on the relationships between the vocabulary of the science of light and the vocabulary of dance elements and composition. The unit explores how to embody the science vocabulary through movement exploration. Students will learn how color and light affect dance performances and the choreographer’s purpose and intent for a particular piece. In the unit, the students will explore the elements of dance, learn, and implement specific dance vocabulary and use choreographic principles. structures and concepts. The students will explore improvisational skills to develop their phrases. Students will work cooperatively in groups and make decisions as a cohesive team. The students will be immersed in the choreographic process and will make contributions to a dance piece that will be performed in the dance concert. In this unit, students will partner a dance term with a science of light term to create their phrases. This unit supports students’ understanding of the various perspectives through which dance can be appreciated in the context of time, space, energy, body, and relationships. This unit focuses on using a variety of thinking skills to analyze and evaluate dance. Specifically, this unit includes a lesson on how to analyze the relationship between dance elements when observing dance and how to interpret the meanings of dances created by their peers. 

Tags , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Permalink | Comments Off on Light Up the Stage
2022 Vol 3: Understanding the Science of Light

Wonderous Wavelengths: Applications of Modelling Periodic Functions to Analyze Phenomena in Light 

April 19, 2025 – 8:57 am

Dalton Cooper, Math, East Mecklenburg High School

Curriculum Unit (PDF)

Click on the arrow to read the Synopsis.


Synopsis: Following Thomas Young’s double-slit experiment in 1802, physicists began to favor the wave model of light, using the properties of a transverse wave to model phenomena observed in nature, such as refraction, reflection, and the Doppler Effect. Mathematically, trigonometric functions can be used to model periodic phenomena, such as light. My curriculum unit uses phenomena that change the amplitude and wavelength of light in order to discuss transformations of the sine and cosine functions, as well as using transformations to the sine and cosine functions to model phenomena in the natural world. 

Tags , , , , , , , | Permalink | Comments Off on Wonderous Wavelengths: Applications of Modelling Periodic Functions to Analyze Phenomena in Light 
2022 Vol 3: Understanding the Science of Light

Red Light, Green Light: An Exploration of Light and Photosynthesis

April 18, 2025 – 12:40 pm

Elizabeth Kerr, 1st Grade, Bain Elementary School

Curriculum Unit (PDF)

Click on the arrow to read the Synopsis.

Synopsis: This unit will look at light and how it is a requirement of plants to survive. Different wavelengths of light affect photosynthesis differently. Students will work to design an experiment to observe how different wavelengths of light affect the plant’s growth. This will lead into a discussion on food chains/webs, where students will discover that the sun and plants are the beginning of every chain/web. This unit will require students to take measurements and record data at least once a week for at least three weeks. 

Tags , , , , , | Permalink | Comments Off on Red Light, Green Light: An Exploration of Light and Photosynthesis