Stop Following Me, Shadow!

Stop Following Me, Shadow!

By Kate Wilkinson-Brindle
Illustrated by Jason Henderson

What is Light?

Light takes away the darkness and
makes it possible for you to see.

Light travels from a light source into
your eyes through your pupils.

TThhiiss ttiinnyy fifirreeflflyy iiss aa lliigghhtt ssoouurrccee Light sources include the sun, electric
bbeeccaauussee iitt ggiivveess oouutt lliigghhtt.. lamps, candles, torches and computer
or television screens. There are even
some animals that give out light with
their bodies!

What Makes a Shadow?

A shadow is made when something
blocks the light. Look at the
shadow that you can make using
two hands. What animal does the
shadow look like?

Light cannot travel through your
hands because they are opaque
(oh-pay-k).

Opaque objects don’t let any light pass through them. They block
the light and make dark shadows.

Translucent (trans-lu-sent) objects let some light pass through
them. They make pale shadows.

Transparent (trans-pa-rant) objects, like things made from clear
glass, let nearly all light pass through them. They only make very
faint shadows.

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Why Does My Shadow Follow Me?

Your shadow follows you because you are opaque. You block the
light. You can escape from your shadow by going in the shadow
of something else. But when you come back out into the
sunshine, your shadow will be there!
You can escape from your shadow in the dark too. But when you
switch the light back on, you will find that your shadow is
following you again.
When the sun is directly above
you, your shadow may be very
short, but it is still following you!
If you are in the light but have no
shadow, you may have become
transparent. Check yourself in a
mirror at once!

Growing and Shrinking Shadows

Have you noticed that your shadow is sometimes long and
sometimes short? Why does your shadow seem to grow at
sunrise or sunset and shrink at midday?
If the sun is directly over your head, your shadow will be short.
At sunrise or sunset, when the sun is near the horizon, your
shadow will be much longer than you are!

The angle of the sun or other light source
can change the size of your shadow.

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Measuring Your Shadow

This is an experiment to measure your
shadow at different times of the day:

1. First thing in the morning, find an
empty part of the playground, and
mark an X on the ground with chalk.

2. Stand on the X, and ask a partner to
draw around your shadow. Write the
time next to your outline.

3. After one hour, go back to the X, and
repeat step two.

4. Repeat step two every hour.
5. Draw a diagram or take a

photograph to record your results

What do you notice?

Useful Shadows

Shadows can be useful in many ways:

Shadows can protect you from the sun. Playing in the
shade is cooler and protects your skin from burning.

Shadows can be used to tell the time. This is a
sundial, which shows the time with the shadow made
by the pointer. People used sundials to tell the time
before watches and other types of clocks were
invented.

Shadow puppets have been used to entertain people
for many years. There are records of people using
shadow puppets to tell stories in India and China
over two thousand years ago.

by Questions

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