Sun Prints
Art that will brighten up your day! You don’t need any artistic skills to pull off this stunt! Learn to make a unique and beautiful craft with only your imagination and a little sunlight.
Materials
Colored construction paper (# of pieces depending on how many you will make)
Simple objects around your house with cool shapes such as legos, toys, leaves, cookie cutters, etc.
Weights (Optional - Magnets work great!)
Procedure
Gather your materials.
Step 1
Find a sunny place outside that will be in direct sunlight and can be undisturbed several hours.
Step 2
Lay-out construction paper flat and exposed to direct sunlight (multiple pieces and different colors could be fun) .
Step 3
Place object(s) and arrange on construction paper (if objects are not heavy enough to keep paper flat, use something to weigh it down).
Step 4
Leave all materials out in the sunlight for several hours (4-6 hours depending on the size of the object(s). Be careful not to touch anything during this time!
Step 5
After several hours in the sun, you can remove the objects from the paper.
Step 6
Enjoy your new designs!
Science Explanation
Kindergarten - 2nd Grade . . .
- K-PS3-1
- Sunlight can be surprisingly strong and powerful, it holds lots of energy together like nothing else. We feel this energy here on Earth as heat and light.
- Look at the difference between the covered paper, and the paper in the sun. What do you see?
- The sun can be so powerful it breaks down the color of objects.
- That’s why covered parts of the paper appear darker; they didn’t have their color drained out.
3rd Grade - 5th Grade . . .
- 5-PS1-3
- What changes do you notice? Why do you think some areas of the paper appear darker?
- The Sun is the starting point of almost all the energy in our solar system. It holds so much of this energy you can walk outside during the day and actually feel the heat coming from millions of miles away!
- Some objects left a darker imprint than others because they were less transparent. For example, if you left a shard of glass on the paper it would allow more sunlight to reach the paper. If you left a ceramic plate, it would not allow for any sunlight to reach the paper
- What other things do you think may change the darkness of the imprint? What would happen if you left the objects in the sun for longer?
- The longer the paper and objects are left in the sun, the more contrasting the colors will be.
- This is because UV light from the sun (Ultra Violet) breaks apart the dye particles in the paper, causing them to appear lighter. The part of the paper covered by an object is protected and therefore unaffected by the UV light.
- This is why we wear sunscreen to protect our skin from UV light breaking it down like the dye particles in the paper!
6th Grade - 8th Grade . . .
- MS-PS4-2
- What does the sun have to do with wifi?
- The reason the imprint of the object placed on the paper was left behind has to do with the sun's light waves.
- The color of the paper is reflected to our eyes via visible light waves, not unlike the light waves coming from the sun.
- The strength of waves is measured in wavelength; the shorter the wave, the more energy carried. Waves can be found in everyday places from radio, wifi, microwaves, and UV Sunlight.
- UV sunlight is so high energy it can break molecules, this is why long exposure to sunlight can cause sunburns, freckles, and even cancer.
- By exposing the paper to UV for a long period of time, we are intentionally breaking the molecules in the paper to change their color
- When you place an object on the paper, the object blocks the sun’s UV waves from reaching that part of the paper. Surprisingly, this makes the imprinted spot appear darker and more full of color.
Written by Connor Ruffalo Inspired by: KiwiCo