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Extend your unit on light into a study of optical illusions.
Your visual kids will love it and your more capable or interested kids can be challenged to create new illusions. Here are a few resources to make it easy to add optical illusions to your science class. |
Optics 4 Kids – The Optical Society for great resources – Check out their activities!
- Easy Activities explore the basic concepts of light and color, suitable for five and older
- Medium Activities are recommended for scientists ten and older
- Advanced Activities are suggested for scientists fifteen and older
Examples of Optical Illusions from the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences
Optical Illusions Archive – 123opticalillusions.com
183 Optical Illusions – BrainBashers.com
Videos to view – I loaded these using viewpure so you skip ads and comments!
- Step into a cube made from candles
- Draw a hand illusion with just felt pens and a sheet of paper
- Draw a hole with a black pencil and a sheet of paper
I found my featured image at Pixabay! Stare at it and try to figure out if you are looking at a structure from the outside or the inside. After staring for a minute look away at a white sheet of paper or a wall and you’ll see the colors change in the afterimage.
Quick Science suggestions take minimal prep time and use common materials.
I don’t like all the ads that can pop up when I’m searching for resources like optical illusions. I use command+shift+4 to take a screen shot of the illusion – problem solved!!
That combination of keys works for a Mac, but what if you have a PC? I did a quick online search and found a link at wikiHow that has three suggestions for a screen shot on a PC. I’ve got a Mac so if the suggestions don’t work, please let me know!!
I didn’t know about viewpure. That’s a great resource for teachers who want to avoid all the suggested videos and the occasional inappropriate comment on youtube!
I came across it by accident but I’ve been very happy with it so far. Here’s a LINK to the FAQs if you want to know more about this resource.
Thanks for the resources. You might also visit wikimedia for dozens of free optical illusions. Here’s the link: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Optical_illusions
These are great! Who wouldn’t want to see gumballs changing colors. Love it.
This is going to keep me busy awhile trying these out. Thank you for visual ideas.
We so need more of this in classrooms. Yay.