Follow a shadow trail
Trace the same shadow at different times of day and record how both its length and direction change around a fixed object.
15 min + return visits · Nature · Suggested starting age band 7–11.
Gather chalk or paper, an upright object.
Choose your marker
Find a sunny, level place that you can return to without entering a road or blocking a path. Stand a reusable bottle on a sheet of card or choose a fixed post. Mark the base so you can tell whether it has moved. Work with the shadow on the ground and keep eyes away from the sun.
Build a time record
- Mark the shadow tip with chalk or pencil. Write the time beside it.
- Measure from the object’s base to the mark using the same unit each time. A length of string works if there is no ruler.
- Return half an hour later. Before drawing, predict where the new tip will fall. Repeat the mark and measurement.
- Make at least one more observation at a different point in the day. Join the marks in time order.
Read the pattern
Which changed more during your visit, length or direction? If a cloud hid the tip, mark a gap in the record rather than guessing. Indoors, move a torch around a fixed object to make several shadows quickly. Keep that trial on a separate page so you can tell which observations came from daylight.