Does everything have a shadow?

Here are some of our thoughts and ideas:

Sophie's bicycle.

During a recent discussion, which saw the girls exploring the question 'does everything have a shadow?' Sophie shared a fascinating thought with us all. She offered: 

“...My bike has a shadow too. Actually, when i’m riding my bike my shadow is riding my bike too.”
- Sophie

We invited Sophie to represent her idea visually, by drawing a picture. Sophie offered next that she thought it might be tricky, but she was very keen to give it a go. She busily set to work and as you can see below, her completed image is fantastic. Sophie seemed very pleased with her work. 

"This is my bike and its shadow." - Sophie

Colourful maths.

Recently the girls have been working busily to collect and organize some of the different materials which make up our treasure box. We discuss similarities and differences between the different items and work to categorize the materials by colour. Following on from this we enjoy counting how many items represent each colour and explore concepts such as ‘more’ and ‘less’. The girls also enjoy having a go at writing down the names of the different colours and the number of items which belong to each group.

  

“Children develop and use mathematical concepts when they collect, organize and compare different objects and materials.”

(Te Whariki p.98)

Shadow theories...

"A shadow must be made of light, because if the sun goes away the shadow dies."

 - Paige

The story of the statue's shadow.

Our shared research. 

Recently, a small group of girls took a walk around the school. They were in search of shadows, and were very surprised to find so many! There were shadows of trees, of birds and even of the slide. It seemed as though there were shadows everywhere.

The girls caught glimpses of different shadows and would mention them, but they didn’t pay the different shadows all that much attention. There was however one particular shadow which seemed to really capture the hearts and minds of the girls.

It was the shadow of one of the statues in the newly landscaped area up in the senior school. “It’s beautiful,” “it’s very skinny,” “it has no arms!” the girls explained. They spent a sustained period of time getting to know both the shadow and the statue, as well as encountering the new space. 

That afternoon we reflected on the fact that the girls were particularly interested in the shadow of the statue, and came up with a handful of possible questions to provoke their thinking. We also considered that the girls had been commenting a lot on the movement of shadows, for example how our own shadows can dance, jump and sit. These movements however, are prompted by the movement of the shadows ‘owner’, and we considered that a question relating to the statues shadow would add a new dimension to the girls inquiry, as a statue is always stationary. It never moves. 

The question which we decided to pose to the girls at our following morning meeting was:

“Do you think the shadow of the statue moves during the day?”

“...or does it always stay in the same place.”

This prompted a rich conversation between the girls. Several of the girls were adamant that the shadow would be unchanging, whereas others were certain it would move. The differing opinions added a fascinating dynamic, and it was beautiful to see the way in which the girls accepted each others opinions.


Next it was time to engage in some hands on research, where the girls would be enabled to test their theories for themselves and take their learning deeper. We filled a basket with little stones and made our way as a group, up to the statue. We explained that we would need to trace the outline of the shadow with the stones. We did this first thing in the morning and returned just before lunch to see if the shadow had moved. The girls were fascinated to discover that the shadow had in fact moved and not only had it moved, but it had become smaller too. This brought to life new wonderings. 

Some of the girls thoughts and ideas about the discoveries they have made: 

“Each day the shadow will move from left to right. Like the sun does. If the sun is on this side of the statue then the shadow is on that side.”  - Emma

“If the sun moves in the sky, then the shadow moves!”  - Zoe
(Zoe was initially quite certain that the shadow wouldn’t move, but her thinking changed as a result of the group research and she seemed very excited about the new discovery she had made.)

New wonderings... 

But why had the shadow become smaller too?

“Maybe a piece of it broke off?”  - Zara

“I think it’s smaller because the clouds have come...and, the sun is facing the other way. That’s why it’s smaller. ”
- Sophie

Can a shadow run, jump, dance?

The movement of shadows:

“Wow, a shadow can move!” - Paige
(Noticing the shadow of a hand moving across the wall.)

“When I walk my shadow comes with me.” - Zara

“A shadow can jump!” - Sara

“A shadow can dance too!” - Georgia

“My shadow is sitting down too!”  - Sophie (As she sits down on the step outside.) 

“When we walk up the stairs our shadow follows.”  - Emma

“A shadow can wave!” - Vanessa

“A shadow can do a handstand.” - Emily

“A shadow can move and be still.” - Emily

Inquiry learning.

"Inquiry is not activities predetermined by the teacher linked by a predetermined focus, topic or theme. It is a collaborative process in which both students and teachers work together, often, to negotiate aspects of the curriculum. Inquiry learning encourages learners to examine the complexity of their world, to explore how it works and their place in it as they form their own understandings instead of being told simple answers to complex problems. It recognizes that students are powerful learners who must be actively engaged in the process of investigating, processing, organizing, synthesizing, refining, extending and applying their knowledge."

From: Focus on Inquiry: A practical approach to curriculum planning by Jeni Wilson and Lesley Wing Jan - pp 8