Do you remember when Peter Pan asks Wendy to sew his shadow back onto his feet? Well, shadows aren't really attached to feet, of course, but they sure do seem to stick to you on a sunny day!
|
Arrange students into pairs. Have each partner hold a leaf so its shadow falls on the paper.
Trace the leaf's shadow with a marker or crayon. Then, lay the leaf down next to the drawing. Is the leaf larger or smaller than the shadow picture?
Leave the paper in the same place. Hold up the leaf and draw the picture again later in the day. In the second picture, does the shadow get larger, does it get smaller, or does it stay the same size?
Involve students in some of these extension activities:
Do a shadow dance. Put on some music that might suit your students' feelings -- slow and graceful like a tree bending in the wind or jazzy and fast like a squirrel hiding its nuts. Now dance with your shadow to the beat! Does your shadow do exactly the same thing that you do?
Ask students if they ever feel lonely. Most of us do. You might ask each student to grab a favorite picture book and take them to sit in the sun and read. Students won't be all alone They'll be reading the book with their shadow!
This activity is excerpted from Nancy Castaldo's Sunny Days and Starry Nights, which is published by Chicago Review Press. The activity is one of more than 65 activities from Sunny Days and Starry Nights that are sure to inspire children as they discover and learn.
|
Article by Nancy Castaldo
Education World®
Copyright © 2006 Education World
08/07/2006
|
Sign up for our free weekly newsletter and receive
top education news, lesson ideas, teaching tips and more!
No thanks, I don't need to stay current on what works in education!
COPYRIGHT 1996-2016 BY EDUCATION WORLD, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
COPYRIGHT 1996 - 2025 BY EDUCATION WORLD, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.