Can you see in the dark?

Lesson narration:

English Spanish

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# Optional Activity: Dark Box

You may not be able to take a field trip into a deep, dark cave, but you can make a Dark Box that lets students experiment with seeing in dim light and darkness.

Go to the next slide for instructions.

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# Optional Activity: Dark Box

A Dark Box is an opaque box with a hole in one end. Students take turns placing a message inside the box and trying to read the message through the opening. How much light do they need to see the message clearly? Students learn that they can see objects only when light shines on them. See Activity Prep below.

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Anchor Connection In the past lesson, you read a story. Two people were exploring a cave. One person thought he could see without any light.

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But when they turned out their lights in the cave, this was all they could see. Discuss. Why did the cave look like this when they turned out their lights? Why couldn’t they see anything?

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When they turned out their lights, it was completely dark. You cannot see things when it is completely dark. You need light to see things.

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Two lessons ago, we saw a kind of animal that looks like this. We could see it even though the night was completely dark. Discuss. How do you think we could see this kind of animal if it was completely dark outside?

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You can see this kind of animal because it makes its own light! Some people call this kind of animal a firefly. Other people call it a lightning bug. They are easy to find at night because they glow when everything else is dark.

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There are many kinds of fireflies. These pictures show one firefly on its feet and one laying on its back. Discuss. Which part of the firefly do you think lights up? Why do you think that?

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Let’s watch a video of a firefly to see which part lights up. You might see it better if you turn the lights off in the room.

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The light comes from inside this part of the firefly’s body. Discuss. If the light can shine through from the inside, is this part of the firefly’s body opaque, translucent, or transparent?

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You can’t clearly see through this part of the firefly’s body, but you can kind of see through this part of the firefly’s body. That means it is translucent.

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Look at the "Wonder" column of your See-Think-Wonder chart. Have any questions been answered? Do you have any new questions? Save this chart. You will use it after the next lesson.

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# Extensions

Below is an idea for extending this topic beyond the activity & exploration you just completed.

Lesson Assessment
Distance Learning: Make a Dark Classroom

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# Distance Learning: Substitute Activity

Instead of making Dark Boxes, you can use this distance-friendly substitute activity.

Make the classroom as dark as possible. From their seats, have students read words and signs around the room. Can they read them all? Can they identify the colors of the words?

Turn on the lights. Ask students to read the words and signs. Which words and signs were the easiest to see in the dark? Which were the hardest? Did they get the colors right?

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light

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what comes from the Sun and lamps and makes it possible to see things

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dark

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very little or no light

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experiment

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a test used to discover new information about a question

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Lesson narration:

English Spanish

Activity Prep

Print Prep

Switch to non-narrated version

In this Read-Along lesson, Santiago visits a cave and discovers that when it's dark (really dark!) he can't see anything. The lesson includes a short exercise where students find the sources of light around them. You can extend the lesson with the optional activity, Dark Box, where students experience what it's like to try to see in the dark.

Preview optional activity

Number of students:

I have a Mystery Pack

Dark Box printout	1 per pair
Dark Box Messages printout	1 per pair
How To Play “Dark Box” worksheet	1 per pair
Crayons Colored pencils or markers will also work.	Details 3 crayons per student
Scissors	1 pair per student
Black Cardstock	2 sheets per pair
Paper Clips	8 clips per pair

Prep Instructions

We recommend making enough Dark Boxes prior to class so that students can work in pairs. If you only have enough materials to make one or two Dark Boxes, you can use this experiment as an activity station.

As an alternative to making Dark Boxes with cardstock, you can also simply use a shoebox (or similar box with a lid). All you have to do is use a sharp knife to cut a 1-inch square on one end of the box that can serve as an eyehole.

Make Your Dark Boxes

If making Dark Boxes from cardstock, watch this video and follow the instructions on the printed Dark Box templates.

Have Students Play “Dark Box”

Have pairs of students cut, fold, and color the Dark Box Messages.
Distribute the “How To Play Dark Box” printout to each pair of students.
Students will take turns placing a message inside the box and try to read the message.
Ask students how much light they need to see the message clearly and if there is anything they can do to let more light into the box. Students will start to notice that they can only read the message once they start to lift the lid of the box to let more light through. (NOTE: If students have difficulty lifting the box lid slightly, you can cut a small hole on the top of the lid and have students cover the hole to make it dark, and uncover the hole to let light in.)