What Makes a Shadow? at Lakeshore Learning

Offering High-Quality Educational Products Since 1954

Please sign in or register | wish list | my account

Move
Close

sign in
Don’t have an account? Register now.

e-mail address:
password:

	Forgot your password? Click here to be e-mailed a new password.

Move
Close

register
Already have an account? Sign in now.

	All fields are required.
e-mail address:
confirm e-mail:
password: (minimum 4 characters)
I am a:	Teacher Parent Both
	Yes, I would like to receive news and promotions via e-mail.



1st–2nd Grade

	Objectives Students will understand that shadows are formed when an object blocks a light source, such as the sun. Students will explain how their own shadows change shape and size.
	Materials Needed Moonbear’s Shadow by Frank Asch What Makes a Shadow? reproducible Chalk
	Introduction Tell students that you are going to read a book about a bear and his shadow. Encourage them to pay close attention to what the bear’s shadow does in the story. Read aloud the book Moonbear’s Shadow by Frank Asch. Then ask students the following questions: What makes Moonbear’s shadow? Why does Moonbear want to get rid of his shadow? How does he try to get rid of his shadow? Why doesn’t it work? What happens to Moonbear’s shadow when he hides behind a tree? Why? Why does Moonbear’s shadow disappear when he buries it? Why does Moonbear’s shadow appear larger during certain times of the day and smaller during other times?
	Procedure Early on a sunny day, take students outside and have them experiment with their shadows. Before you begin, have students point toward the direction of the sun. Then identify where their shadows are in relation to the sun. Ask, “Are your shadows short or tall?” Have students move around and observe their shadows as you ask them the following questions: What makes your shadow move? What happens to your shadow when you stretch your arms up high? What happens to your shadow when you crouch down low to the ground? Can you make your shadow disappear completely? Divide students into pairs and give each pair a piece of chalk. Have students stand on a hard surface, such as the blacktop or sidewalk. Prompt them to take turns using the chalk to trace around each other’s shoes and shadows. Encourage them to label the outline with their name and the time of day. Ask students to predict what their shadows will look like when they return to the same spot later in the day. Have students test their predictions a few hours later by returning to the same spot, using their shoe outline as a guide. Instruct students to take turns tracing their new shadows. Invite students to discuss the differences in their shadows. Why do they think the shadows moved? Explain to students that their shadows look different because the Earth is rotating. The sun is now in a different position relative to where they are standing.
	Guided/Independent Practice Provide each student with a copy of the What Makes a Shadow? reproducible. Invite students to record what their shadows looked like at each time of the day. Then have them complete the sentence at the bottom of the sheet.
	the 1st–2nd grade lesson plan. (Includes all printable materials.)

more great lesson plans


Parts of a Plant Bubble Observations It’s Time for… Eating Right: Healthy Choices Butterfly Life Cycle Reading and Responding: The Five Senses (Aligned to Common Core) Counting Flowers Waste or Save? Water Lesson What’s the Weather? Getting to Know Each Other Shape Study (Aligned to Common Core) Colorful Discoveries Counting Clovers: Number Matching Dr. Seuss Graphing Fun Umbrella Color Patterns The Wonder of Word Meanings (Aligned to Common Core) Who Works In Our Community? Chinese New Year Celebration Valentine Add & Solve Counting Hearts (Aligned to Common Core) 100th Day Activity Beginning Sounds Hunt Story Sequencing Alphabet Name Game What’s My Shape Alphabet Water Painting Pilgrim Patterns Ten Little Turkeys: A Counting Lesson Autumn Owls Beginning Addition Counting Leaves Match-Ups Bear-y Fun Button Sorting Winter Bear Warm-Up Alphabet Mitten Match Teddy Bear Parade Beginning Sound Presents Gingerbread Graphing more	Rolling for Number Sense: Even and Odd Numbers Introduction to Idioms Our Wonderful Water Cycle Playing with Push and Pull Float Your Boat Bundles of Tens: Place Value Lesson (Aligned to Common Core) Jelly Bean Fractions Hooray for Earth Day! Action-Packed Action Words “Pot of Coins” Money Counting Lesson Mystery Coins Bundles of Beans: A Place Value Lesson Bushels of Sight-Word Fun Graph Your Heart Out Compound Word Hearts Reading for Details (Aligned to Common Core) Fact Family Trees What Makes a Shadow? What’s Next? Sequencing Story Rhyme Time: Word Families Lesson First Day, Last Day Friendly Letter First Day Friendship Building Parts of a Whole Get to 10: Equation Fun The Heart of a Story: Characters, Setting and Events (Aligned to Common Core) Story Elements Lesson Comparing Living Things Comparing & Contrasting: Thanksgiving Then and Now Pumpkin Seed Count and Compare Fall Skip-Counting Fun Wild About Word Problems (Aligned to Common Core) Peppermint Parts: A Fraction Lesson My Gift to the World Writing New Year’s Resolution Fun in the Snow Snowman Stories more	Writing a Persuasive Brochure Vocabulary: Using Context Clues Multiplication Mania Teaching Tangrams Equivalent Fraction Activities Literal vs. Nonliteral Meanings (Aligned to Common Core) Rainy Day Writing Water Drop Experiment Earth Day Every Day Reduce, Reuse, Recycle! Comparing and Ordering Fractions (Aligned to Common Core) Building Vocabulary: Prefixes Number Sense Bingo What Is Equal? Menu Math Drawing Conclusions: Detecting Character Traits Making Sense of Multiplication (Aligned to Common Core) Chinese Tangrams Black History Hall of Fame Candy Coordinate Graphs Vocabulary: Animal Alliteration Point-Of-View Study (Aligned to Common Core) Creating Our Classroom Community My Awesome, Amazing, Very Good, Super-Great Day Story The Sea and Me: A Measurement Lesson Gumdrop Geometry Poems for Peace Amazing Ocean Animals Character Building: Bullying Autumn Tree Sentence Building Cause & Effect: Why Did the Pilgrims Come to the New World? Pumpkin Measurement Summarizing a Story Reading Strategies: Asking Questions My Winter Acrostic Place Value Practice more