Investigate How Shadows are Affected by Light Angle

So we know how shadows are made but how can shadows change?

Shadows are made when a light source shines on an opaque object that the light cannot travel through. The light that can travel around it, does - remember light only travels in straight lines - and the light that cannot get through creates a shadow behind the object.

So how can we change a shadow?

The direction or angle of the light can change the direction and size of the shadow.

If you draw around your shadow in the morning, your shadow will be longer and on one side of you.

If you draw around your shadow at midday, it would be beneath you and very short.

If you draw around your shadow in the afternoon, it will be on the other side of you and longer than before.

Changing the angle of the light changes the length of the shadow.

We can also change the size of the shadow by making it equally larger or smaller overall.

We can do this by either moving the light source or the object closer or further away from the light source.

What do you think will happen if we move the object closer?

If the object is closer to the light source, the shadow will be bigger because it is blocking more of the light.

If the object is further away from the light source...the shadow will get smaller! This is because less light is being blocked by the object.

In this activity, we will be looking at different light sources and objects and deciding how the shadows will be changed.

Let's go!