Shadow Tracking from the Sun

As the earth rotates the sun changes places in the sky. This affects the way that shadows are seen on the Earth's surface.

How does the sun affect the way we see things? 

• Why do shadows appear different sizes throughout the day? 
• Is the shape of the shadow the same or different than the object that is making it?
• How can we make a shadow?
• Are there ways that we can track a shadow throughout the day? 

Students could: 

• Measure where the sun is from a consistent spot at different times of the day. 
• Use chalk to trace and measure shadow movement.
• Estimate a person's height with shadows.
• Discuss the size of shadows throughout the day. 
• Discuss the impact of the sun on our daily lives.

• PBS LearningMedia | Bringing the Universe to America's Classrooms: Earth and Space Science | Predictable Patterns in the Sky: Short video of the sun moving across the sky.
• PBS LearningMedia | Bringing the Universe to America's Classrooms: Earth and Space Science | Changes in the Sky: An interactive lesson exploring real-life and animated views illustrating the daily patterns of motion of the sun, moon and stars in the sky.
• PBS LearningMedia | Bringing the Universe to America's Classrooms: Earth and Space Science | Peep Sees Patterns in the Sky: Interact with the animated storybook to observe and predict patterns of the sun, moon and stars over a day and analyze evidence of the apparent movement of the sun along the arc-like path over a day in a time-lapse video.
• PBS LearningMedia | PreK-12 Resources for New School Routines: Shifting Shadows: Explore how the position of the Sun in the sky affects shadows on Earth’s surface in this live-action video from PEEP and the Big Wide World. Use the video to observe evidence of the relationship between the Sun and shadows and to describe how the position of the Sun in the sky results in changes in the size and direction of shadows.
• PBS LearningMedia | Go West Young Peep: Nine-minute video about Chirp and Peep, who follow their shadows throughout the day.