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In this activity, learners explore how mirrors reflect light and change the way we see things. Learners examine reflections of the letter "R", adjusting a pair of hinged mirrors until they see exactly one complete reflection of the "R" in each mirror. Learners repeat moving the mirrors, increasing the number of reflected R's by one each time, until they see seven reflections. By collecting data about the angle between the mirrors, learners can develop a formula that relates the number of reflections observed to the angle between the mirrors. [Activity is publicly available through a web crawler capture on Archive.org.]
- 5 to 10 minutes
- 45 to 60 minutes
- $1 - $5 per group of students
- Ages 11 - 14
- Activity, Experiment/Lab Activity, Lesson/Lesson Plan
- English
Quick Guide
Materials List (per group of students)
- 1 set of hinged mirrors
- 1 protractor
- Copy of The Pirate Handout (page 7 of PDF)
- Copies of STUDENT HANDOUT: Multiple Reflections (pages 4-6 of PDF)
- Pen/pencil
Subjects
-
Mathematics
- Algebra
-
Data Analysis and Probability
- Data Analysis
- Data Collection
- Data Representation
- Probability
-
Geometry
- Plane Geometry
-
Measurement
- Circles
- Number and Operations
- Reasoning and Proof
- Representation
-
The Nature of Technology
-
The Design Process
- Problem Solving
-
The Design Process
-
Physical Sciences
-
Vibration and Waves
- Light and Optics
-
Light and Optics
- Lenses and Mirrors
-
Vibration and Waves
-
The Nature of Science
-
The Scientific Process
- Conducting Investigations
- Gathering Data
- Formulating Explanations
- Communicating Results
-
The Scientific Process
Audience
To use this activity, learners need to:
- see
- read
- touch
Learning styles supported:
- Involves teamwork and communication skills
- Involves hands-on or lab activities
Other
This resource is part of:
Access Rights:
- Free access
By:
Rights:
- All rights reserved, The International Society for Optical Engineering (SPIE), The Optical Society of America (OSA), and The Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy, Inc. (AURA), 2005
Funding Source:
- National Science Foundation