Pass On Through is an inquiry science activity focusing on the concept of
light and the differences
between  opaque, transparent & translucent light. The original activity is
set-up for cooperative
work using an inquiry guide sheet. When using, you may want to rewrite in a
similar format to be
handed out to teams of 3-4 students or it could be used with a teacher
directed technique. Plan has
been written in language I use on the original guide. This has been used with
third grade through
fifth grade but could be adapted to many grade levels.

Materials: 1 flashlight per team of 3-4 students; a variety of testing
materials such as: wax paper,
aluminum foil, plastic wrap, scraps of cloth, empty glass jars and glasses of
water, paper plates,
tissue paper, cellophane, cardboard, hand lens, mirrors; worksheet for each
team to record each
prediction and observation. 

Guide heading: Pass On Through-Today you will work as a team to discover what
types of
materials will or will not let light pass through.

Jobs: Roll the dice to determine who has what job. 1. Materials Captain: (on
sheet they would
write their name here) You will gather all materials and return materials
when the task is complete.
2. Instruction Captain: (name here) You will read all instructions and make
sure all team members
understand the procedures. 3. Recorder:(name here) You will record all
findings. 4. Explorers:
Everyone on the team should work together to set up and carry out the
exploration.

Procedures: Read and follow all directions before starting. Make sure
everyone understands each
step. 1. Materials Captain gathers the materials. 1 flashlight, glass jar,
plastic wrap, water, wax
paper, white and black construction paper, cardboard, aluminum foil, tissue
paper, cellophane,
paper plate, hand lens, cloth scraps, mirror, (and any other materials you
wish to include) 2.
Recorder should list all the items on a separate sheet of paper. 3. Predict
how well each item will
allow light to pass through. 4. Turn off the classroom lights. Test each item
by holding the item up
to a flashlight. Mark how well each item allowed light to pass through.
Discuss: Talk about each
question below in your team. Record your ideas. Be ready to share. 1. Which
objects all ow light
to pass through easily? How was this determined? 2. Which objects blocked all
the light? How was
this determined? 3. Which objects blocked some light? How was this
determined? 4. How can the
ability of an object to block light or allow light to pass through be helpful
to people? Questions:
Brainstorm 3 questions you have about today's activity with light. 

After allowing the students to explore the materials, have a whole class
discussion of what each
team discovered. At this time you can introduce the terms opaque,
transparent, and translucent.
Opaque: a material that will not allow light to pass through, such as steel,
wood, etc. Transparent:
a material that will allow light to pass freely, such as some types of glass,
air, water, etc.
Translucent: a material that will allow some light to pass through, such as
tissue paper, cellophane,
etc. 

Extension: As a homework connection,  each student can  conduct a scavenger
hunt to find items
to fit each category. They may bring in some of the items for student
demonstrations for the whole
class.
Happy Inquiry!