The Light Trap

The Light Trap: Investigating Light and Pigments is a part of the Science Unlocked physics curriculum series grades 3-7. Light works in wondrous ways! The Light Trap is an Accelerate level Science Unlocked curriculum kit for the student interested in studying the science of light with an artistic flair! 

In this kit, students will investigate light's role in energy transfer and find out how pigments connect science, art, and society. In several fun science experiments and STEM activities, they'll get hands-on with some super-black paint, see how coatings are used to make things incredibly dark, explore light refraction, and use chromatography to test paint and ink!

The Light Trap comes with a full-color Student Curriculum Workbook and a detailed Teacher Guide. It uses a phenomenon-based approach, designed to fully engage students in concepts of light patterns, energy transfer, reflection and absorption, and the particle model of matter. Through a series of light science experiments, students will gain an understanding of how science and art are connected through the application of chemistry and physics. This Accelerate level kit will provide over 9 hours of learning and includes science activities that introduce your student to many foundational chemistry concepts.

The student will engage in these exciting activities:

1. Paint some objects with super-black paint
2. Learn about the darkest coating in the world, Vantablack®
3. Shine a light on albedo by experimenting with painted objects
4. See if you can make objects "disappear" using only paint
5. Discover color mixing and separation (chromatography)
6. Compare the chromatography "crawls" of paint and ink

Use The Light Trap to answer questions such as:

• How are science and art connected?
• How do energy and light travel? 
• How are pigments used to reflect and absorb light?
• What happens when light passes through bright vs. dark surfaces?
• How do super-dark coatings work? 
• Can you make a rock or piece of paper disappear? 

Watch as wavelengths travel to make light bend before your eyes! This kit provides students with a fun STEM challenge by diving into rainbow science to understand how light sources are either reflected or absorbed. Students will test a variety of surfaces and coatings through a series of DIY simple science experiments and light activities. Learn how light waves refract from one surface to another and see if you can make objects disappear! You may even spark an idea for your next science fair project!

The Light Trap kit is a part of the Science Unlocked Accelerate series and is recommended for grades 3-7.

Interested in learning more? Check out our Student Workbook Sample and Teacher Guide Sample! 

More Information

• Safety Information (SDS)

This kit contains:

• 1 Beaker
• 2 Binder Clips
• 1 Sheet of Cardstock
• 1 Black Construction Paper
• 10 Filter Papers
• 2 Granite Specimens
• 1 Isopropyl Alcohol
• 1 Penlight
• 1 Marker
• 1 Paint Brush
• 1 Super-black Paint
• 5 Wooden splints

You will also need:

• Scissors
• Water

• Learning outcome: Investigate light’s role in energy transfer and sight, and find out how pigments connect science, art, and society.
• NGSS science standards alignment

• 4-PS3-2 Make observations to provide evidence that energy can be transferred from place to place by sound, light, heat, and electric currents.
• 4-PS4-2 Develop a model to describe that light reflecting from objects and entering the eye allows objects to be seen.
• 5-PS1-1 Develop a model to describe that matter is made of particles too small to be seen.
• MS-PS1-3 Gather and make sense of information to describe that synthetic materials come from natural resources and impact society.