The National Curriculum states that children (in Year 6) should be taught to plan different types of scientific enquiries to answer questions, including recognising and controlling variables where necessary.
The children in Year 6 worked in groups to plan and carry out their investigation. The line of enquiry was: How does the distance from the light source affect the size of an object’s shadow?
The children worked well together to ensure that their test was carried out fairly and that their results were recorded accurately.
Our conclusion: ‘The closer the object to the torch, the taller the shadow. The further the object from the torch, the shorter the shadow. Our results show this because we could see the length increasing each time we recorded it.’
‘The shadow is definitely bigger and longer if the object is close to the light source but sometimes if the light source is too close, then the shadow can look distorted.’
