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Make a Shadow Clock

A companion sheet — print it, scribble on it, keep it or recycle it

Voleio

What we're doing

A stick, some chalk and the rotation of the Earth.

  • About 40 minutes
  • Science
  • Experiment

Gather these

  • A stick
  • Chalk or stones
  • A sunny day

Step by step

  • Push the stick upright into ground or a pot.
  • Mark the shadow tip every hour.
  • Label each mark with the time.
  • Predict where the shadow will be tomorrow.

Worth talking about

Earth's rotation
Shadows and light
Telling time
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Draw what you found

There's no wrong way to fill this in

Voleio

Two things worth drawing

Tick what you did

Earth science
Time
Prediction
Tried something new
Asked a question
Finished happy

A grown-up's note

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Take it further

Three doors out of the same activity

Voleio

If it felt tricky

Mark three times only: morning, noon, evening.

If it felt easy

Explain the length changes and compare with a different season.

If you'd rather do it differently

Use a torch indoors to model it in fast-forward.

Next time, we could

  • Try it outdoors
  • Invite a friend or sibling
  • Stretch it over a whole week

Our own ideas