This page is a continuation of a tutorial about light reflection and refraction. It contains a diagram and suggestions on how to derive Snell's Law, which governs the refraction of light in a medium. For background to this derivation,...

Students explore this simple physics principle: In order to view an object, you must sight along a line at that object; and when you do light will come from that object to your eye along the line of sight.

While a ray diagram may help one determine the approximate location and size of the image, it will not provide numerical information about image distance and image size. To obtain this, students are introduced to the Mirror Equation and...

Young scholars will design a controlled experiment to demonstrate the greenhouse effect and the effect of different surfaces on light reflection.

Understand the physics behind Roy G. Biv, and how rainbows are formed by drawing upon our understanding of refraction, internal reflection, and dispersion.

[Free Registration/Login Required] In the scenario shown here, the laser cannot shine through the black barrier but can hit all three targets by reflecting off of the floor. Use the red dot to change the angle of the laser generator and...

Students participate in this skill-building activity where they explore how the location of an object in front of a curved mirror affects the characteristics of the projected image.

Looking for some hands-on activities to use with your students to teach reflection? This resource offers a couple of experiments on the angle of reflection and light absorption. This resource is in PDF form; requires Adobe Reader.

From the Yerkes Observatory Virtual Tour web site. Compares and contrasts reflecting and refracting telescopes. A link from the page leads to a second page which explains why most modern research telescopes are reflecting telescopes.

Kids learn about the behavior of light as a wave in the science of physics including reflection, refraction, and diffraction.

At this college physics department site, the polarization of light is explained and illustrated as well as the primary methods of polarization (scattering, reflection, and refraction).

This instructional activity engages students in learning about light. Studets will describe how light is produced, reflected, refracted, and separated.

At this univeristy physics department site, the polarization of light is explained and illustrated. Methods for analyzing light to determine the degree of polarization are stated and explained with equations.

This instructional activity engages students in learning about light through multiple sources. Students will learn how light is produced, reflected, refracted, and separated. Students will communicate their findings through an...

Students discover how mirrors affect optics in this module through reading informational text, watching animations, and answering self-checking practice questions.

Students apply everything they have learned about light properties and laser technologies to designing, constructing and presenting laser-based security systems that protect the school's mummified troll. In the associated activity,...

Lighting is responsible for nearly one-third of the electricity use in buildings. One of the best ways to conserve energy is to make sure the lights are turned off when no one is in a room. This process can be automated using motion...

Strips of gelatin dessert and a laser pointer demonstrate total internal reflection.

In this activity, students tackle this aspect of engineering as they solve problems for precise angles and speeds, and predict data output when samples are altered.

An investigation into the total internal reflection of light, using a laser pointer. Accompanied by an explanation of what's happening, a discussion of Snell's Law, and links to additional information.

A simple activity to investigate how light reflects off a flat surface, a convex one, and a concave one. With a link to an article on reflection.

A brief summary and illustrations of light and how the lights rays are reflected and bent.

An experiment to investigate how many images appear as the angle between two hinged mirrors is increased. Accompanied by an explanation of what is happening, questions for students to consider, and a link to an article about reflection.

You've probably noticed the colorful patterns "reflecting" from the shiny surface of a CD disk. What you are seeing is actually diffraction of white light, and the rainbows of color are diffraction patterns. In this project you'll learn...