Young scholars investigate the essential concepts of how lenses work to magnify vision, and then build simple telescopes to demonstrate their understanding. They write a description of how their telescope could be improved and how it works.

Young scholars construct a simple refracting telescope. They calculate the magnification.

Fifth graders explore electromagnetic waves and light. In this light activity, 5th graders draw the parts of a wave of the electromagnetic spectrum. They compare a flashlight to a laser to see how the light looks when shined through...

This well-designed presentation covers many important aspects of the science behind light. In it, pupils view slides that have a lot of the important vocabulary associated with science, slides of famous scientists who made important...

Seventh graders describe and conduct an experiment that identifies the physical properties of light. They explore sources of visible light and an electromagnetic spectrum. Students explain the conversion of one form of energy to another.

Students explore the parts of a microscope. In this microscope lesson, students examine simple and compound microscopes. Students discover how the parts of a microscope work together to generate an image.

Students explore the world of the very small using a Flash plug-in Virtual Electron Microscope. They complete and discuss an activity in which unknown samples are placed under the computer simulated microscope to determine where the...

Fifth graders observe the video, Exploring Light and Color. They access a website to create their own light show. They conduct lab experiments to investigate refraction, reflection,and other light-related topics.

Students make a pinhole viewer to demonstrate how it inverts light passing through it which produces inverted images.

In this online interactive reflection and refraction activity, students respond to 7 multiple choice and fill in the blank questions regarding the information included in the provided paragraphs.

Students create their own cameras to understand how artists use light to capture an image in a photograph. For this light lesson plan, students use tape, wax paper, rubber bands, and more to create their cameras.

Students analyze a microscope and study what they do.  In this investigative lesson students study how microscopes were first invented, and how ray diagrams are used in conjunction. 

[Free Registration/Login may be required to access all resource tools.] Students describe and predict image formation as a consequence of refraction through a thin convex lens.

This passage will test your knowledge on lenses.

Article explaining what lenses are and how they work. At the end of the article, there are links to several hands-on activities for investigating lenses.

Lenses are precisely shaped pieces of glass that have been developed and used in corrective glasses, telescopes, microscopes, binoculars, and magnifying glasses. They can be convex or concave. Links are provided to a video an a test.

This resource explores the science behind light and how mirrors reflect it. Also contains information on lenses both convex and concave.

[Free Registration/Login Required] Change the focal point in this interactive convex lens to see how the focal length changes. After the activity, answer a challenge question to check for understanding.

This lesson explains what lenses are, the different between a converging and diverging lens, the difference between a double convex and double concave lens, and gives definitions for terms related to lenses.

Kids learn about lenses and light in the science of physics including concave, convex, converging, diverging, focal point, meniscus, and Plano lenses.

[Free Registration/Login Required] Observe how the location of the virtual image changes by dragging the red dots on the object.

An investigation into how lenses behave. Students explore using convex and concave lenses in various ways and record their observations. They are then are directed to another site to try activities where they can manipulate virtual lenses.

This is a 10-question quiz about thin lenses.

Students use this tutorial to investigate the refractive ability of converging and diverging lenses.