This week is British Science week and Maple Class have been experimenting with time and light!
To investigate time and light, Maple Class began by looking at St Mary’s Clock where the children noticed that the numbers were “different” and they talked about the fact that the numerals were Roman.
On returning to the classroom, they looked at a conventional clock face and talked about the role of the long and the short hands. The children talked about the different clocks and watches their parents used. Some of them have their own clocks, including rabbit and candy clocks!
To gauge length of time, they then experimented with timers, jumping up and down for a whole minute and breathing deeply for 30 seconds, to recover!
To help think about the relationship between light and time, they created pictures. The children chose lots of flat shapes to tape on to their pieces of paper, arranging them as they wished. They thought about the way that the shapes would block the light from getting to the paper and the effect that this would have and talked about having to expose the pictures to the light and the fact that they would have to wait a long time before they take the shapes off. Some of them made a connection with how long it is taking for their recycled paper to dry out.
Skye: “I am trying to block the light from it.”
Rosie: “So, the shape might protect it and there will be a gap there.”
Charlie: “It is going to go in there, and not in there.”
Sid: “I didn’t cover these holes up so they will have the light.”
Clemmie: “It’s going to take a very long time! We will have to be patient.”
Iris: “I am going to have loads of dark bits on mine.”
Florence: “I am stopping the light. It will be dark here.”
Maple Class enjoyed talking about shadows and when they had observed them. The children had lots of ideas to share:
Rosie: “I did it with my nanny. We made scare shadows!”
Florence: “In the sun, when it is sunny, you walk and your shadow is under your feet.”
Sid: “I make shadows with my torch and my guinea with lights.”
Skye: “Shadows go away when it is dark. They need the light.”
Zach: “You can make shadows of yourself, they get bigger and smaller.”
They created a shadow theatre with a sheet and a lamp using shadow puppets to create a story. Initially, the story was told by an adult but then some of the children also wanted to have a go and continued the story on!
They then went up to the playground to experiment with making shadows with their bodies. Unfortunately it was raining and very dull but they still managed to create lots of different shadow shapes!
And then into church where they experimented with creating shadows in a very different level of light.
