Sunlight Warms Things
- Physics
- Ages 6–8 · Grades 1–2
- Hands-on experiment
What you’ll find out
- Sunlight warms whatever it shines on.
- Shade blocks sunlight, so things in the shade stay cooler.
- Dark colours get hotter in the sun than light colours.
No sign-up and no real names. In the lesson you check your understanding as you read, run the experiment yourself, and practise until it sticks.
The sun warms what it shines on
When the sun shines on something, it warms it up. Sand on a sunny day can feel hot under your feet. Water in the sun warms up too, but more slowly than sand. A thermometer tells us exactly how warm something is.
Shade keeps things cool
On a hot day, standing under a tree feels cooler. The tree blocks the sunlight and makes shade. Sand in the shade stays cooler than sand in the sun. Colour matters too: dark things soak up more sunlight and get hotter, while light things stay cooler.
Curriculum links: NGSS K-PS3-1 · NGSS K-PS3-2