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What does your shadow do when you're not looking?
Sun & Shadows Unit | Lesson 2 of 4

What does your shadow do when you're not looking?

Sun & Shadows Unit | Lesson 2 of 4
Lesson narration:
Scroll for prep

Hi! I’m Jada. This is my mom and my brother, Billy.

One summer morning, we all went to the beach.

At the beach, Mom put up her umbrella.

The umbrella blocked the sunshine.

It made a shadow.

I blocked the sunshine, so I made a shadow, too.

My shadow was taller than I was.

When I moved, my shadow moved.

It followed me everywhere.

The sun went behind a cloud. My shadow disappeared.

The sun came out and my shadow came back.

stop & talk

Stop & Talk

Why did Jada's shadow disappear?
Why did it come back?

I only had a shadow when there was sunshine.

When there was no light, I had no shadow.

I wondered: What else does my shadow do when I’m not paying attention?

I decided to find out.

“Hey, Billy! I have an idea. Draw a line around my shadow.”

“Why?” Billy asked.

“If my shadow changes, I will see the change,” I told him.

“I will if you help me build a sandcastle,” Billy said.

Billy drew a line around my shadow.

I helped Billy build a sandcastle.

At lunchtime, we all sat in the shade under the umbrella.

We had a picnic.

After lunch, I looked at my shadow.

“Look at this, Billy!” I said.

stop & talk Stop & Talk: How has Jada's shadow changed? How has the position of the sun changed?

In the morning, the sun was low in the sky.

My shadow was tall.

At lunchtime, the sun was high above me.

My shadow was short.

get up & move

Get Up & Move!

Pretend to be a shadow.
It’s morning…Stretch up tall!
It’s lunchtime…Shrink down small!

I wondered: What will my shadow look like in the afternoon?

“Your shadow was tall in the morning and it got shorter,” Billy said. “I think it will keep getting shorter.”

“I think it will get tall again,” I said. “The sun will be low in the sky, just like it was this morning.”

stop and talk Stop & Talk: What do you think Jada’s shadow will look like in the afternoon? Why do you think that?

Billy and I played on the beach all afternoon.

Then it was time to go home.

I looked at my shadow one more time.

The sun was low. My shadow was tall again!

And something else had changed.

stop & talk

Stop & Talk

How is Jada’s morning shadow different from her afternoon shadow?
How is the morning sun different from the afternoon sun?

In the morning, the sun was over the fence.

My shadow pointed at the water.

In the afternoon, the sun was over the water.

My shadow pointed at the fence.

Now the sun was going down.

Mom folded her umbrella.

Billy put his shovel in his bucket.

It was time to go home.

We walked toward the parking lot.

My shadow pointed the way to go.

THE END

Optional Activity: Trace Your Shadow

Your students can trace their shadows, just like Jada did.

Step 1: Have students pair up and trace each other’s shadows in chalk—first in the morning, then in the afternoon. Use different colors for different times of day. Be sure students trace around their shoes first and write their names next to their shadows.

Step 2: Near each shadow, have students draw an arrow to where the sun is in the sky at that time of day.

Step 3: At the end of the day, ask students why they think their morning and afternoon shadows pointed in different directions.

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Anchor Connection Look at these pictures from the past lesson. Discuss. Where is the Sun when Jada’s shadow is longer? Is the Sun higher in the sky, or lower? And where is the Sun when Jada’s shadow is shorter?
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When the Sun is low, shadows are long. When the Sun is high, shadows are short.
Let’s look at the shadow of this tree. This video is faster than real life. Watch, then discuss. Is the shadow getting longer, or shorter? Does this mean the Sun is moving higher in the sky, or moving lower? Why do you think that?
Let’s look this way, so we can see a tree and the Sun at the same time. Watch, then discuss. When the Sun moves down, does the shadow get longer or shorter?
Don’t watch yet! First, discuss. We can’t see the Sun in this video. But the Sun will move up. What do you think will happen to the shadow of this tiny tree when the Sun moves up? Will the shadow get longer or shorter?
Watch, then discuss. Are these shadows getting longer, or shorter? Does that mean the Sun is moving up, or down? How do you know?
The shadows are moving to the right and getting longer. That means the Sun is moving to the left and going down!
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We can’t see the Sun from here. But we know it is moving down because the shadows are getting longer!
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Step
01/03
In the Think column of your See-Think-Wonder Chart, record any new things that you figured out from these shadows.
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Step
02/03
Look back at the Wonder column of your See-Think-Wonder Chart. Discuss. Do you have any new questions? Do you have any answers to your old questions?
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Step
03/03
Save your See-Think-Wonder Chart. You will review it later in the unit.
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shadow


1 of 3

a dark shape made when an object is in front of a light source
Slide Image

light


2 of 3

what comes from the Sun and lamps and makes it possible to see things
Slide Image

position


3 of 3

the place where something is, such as behind or in front
🎉 That’s it for this lesson! How did it go?
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Lesson narration:

Grade 1

Day Patterns

Sun, Shadows, & Daily Patterns

1-ESS1-1

4710 reviews

Activity Prep

Print Prep
In this Read-Along lesson, Jada explores why her shadow changes over the course of a day at the beach. The lesson includes a short exercise where students act out the movement of shadows with their bodies. You can extend the lesson with the optional activity, Trace Your Shadow, where students trace their shadows using colored chalk and track the shadow’s changes throughout the day.
Preview optional activity

Grade 1

Day Patterns

Sun, Shadows, & Daily Patterns

1-ESS1-1

4710 reviews
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Sun Shadows Read-Along Lesson 2: What does your shadow do when you're not looking?

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