Classroom Curriculum
< BackMarble MagnificationDownload
What you need
- Handful of small clear marbles either round or flat
- Clear plastic cup
- Cup of water
- Dollar bill, a piece of newspaper or another object with small print
What to do
- Add just enough marbles to cover the bottom of the cup. They should not roll around.
- Place the cup with the marbles over the dollar bill, paper or other object to be viewed.
- Look from the top of the cup through the bottom and try to read the print or identify small objects in the pictures on the bill.
- Add just enough water to cover the marbles in the cup.
- Now look at the dollar bill and try to identify objects in the picture.
What to ask
- How did the dollar bill look before you poured in the water?
- What did you notice after you added the water?
Did you know?
The marble acts like a lens. Lenses bend light, changing the way it travels. By bending light, objects may appear bigger, smaller or even upside down. This is how the lenses in eyeglasses work. Doctors select a lens that will allow your eyes to have a sharper image of the world. In this activity, when we added water to the marbles the light bent in a way which allowed us to see the object below the glass better.
What’s next?
Try doing this activity with a different shape marble. How does it change the outcome?
Exhibits: | How Does It Work?Invention ConventionMatter Factory |
Grades: | K |
Subjects: | Physical Science |
TEKS: | false |