How to bend the light

Do your kids dream of creating a wizard’s invisibility cloak? Well with this light bending kids science experiment they will discover one of the elements that go into the science behind Harry’s cloak: It’s called refraction! Enjoy this science project experiment with your kids today.

What you need:

• Water
• Scissors
• Small rectangular box or shoe box
• Square or rectangular jar
• Torch

Number of players:
2+

Activity:

Use the scissors to cut a narrow vertical opening at one end of the shoe box.

Fill the jar with water.

Put the jar in the shoe box with a corner of the jar against the opening.

Turn off the lights and pull the curtains to make the room as dark as possible for the best results.

Turn on the torch and hold it against the opening so that the beam of light shines straight through to the jar of water.

Watch the light bend, right before your eyes!

Notes

• This is called refraction. Refraction occurs here due to the light moving more slowly through water than through air. When the light enters the water it slows and bends. When the light exits the water, it speeds up and bends again.