Make a pinhole projector
You’ll need
- Aluminium foil
- Scissors
- Sticky tape
- Drawing pins
- Two pieces of white card for each person
Move like the Sun
- Split into pairs. One person is the Sun, and the other is the Earth.
- The Sun in each pair should stand and stretch to be as big as they can. They should move their hands so they look like they’re twinkling.
- The first action the Earth does is rotation. The Earth should stand at arm’s length from the Sun, and spin around on the spot.
- The second action the Earth does is revolution. Without stopping spinning on the spot, the Earth should walk slowly in an oval around their Sun.
- If they want to, pairs can swap roles and try again.
Be safe around the Sun
- Ask everyone what they do to stay safe in the sun.
- It’s important to look after your eyes, too. You should never look straight at the Sun, because your eyes can be damaged by its energy and brightness.
- To look safely at the Sun, you need to filter out most of the light energy before it reaches your eyes. One way to do this is by making a pinhole projector.
Make a pinhole projector
- Give everyone a piece of card. They should cut a small square or rectangle out of the middle of it.
- Everyone should cut a rectangle out of foil. The foil rectangle needs to be slightly larger than the square they’ve cut out of their card – using the card as a template to draw around helps to make sure the piece of foil is big enough.
- Everyone should use the sticky tape to stick their piece of foil over the hole in their card.
- Everyone should use a push pin to make a small hole in the centre of the foil, to finish their pinhole projector.
- Everyone should set up their pinhole projector by putting another piece of white card on the floor to act like a screen.
- Everyone should hold their pinhole projectors so that the Sun is behind and above them. The light source will be projected on to the screen. Why not try working in pairs, with one person picking up the screen and moving it closer or further to the projector, to see what happens?
Reflection
This activity helped you to value the outdoors. Did you get to go outside and view the Sun? Where did you go? Was it a nice space? Did you enjoy being in nature? What does the Sun do to the natural environment?
This activity also helped you to develop skills. Do you know how to keep yourself safe in the Sun? Do you know how you like to learn things (such as how the Earth rotates and revolves) – was moving and acting it out helpful? Did you practice fiddly cutting and using the pins to make small neat holes?
Safety
All activities must be safely managed. You must complete a thorough risk assessment and take appropriate steps to reduce risk. Use the safety checklist to help you plan and risk assess your activity. Always get approval for the activity, and have suitable supervision and an InTouch process.
- Scissors
Supervise young people appropriately when they’re using scissors. Store all sharp objects securely, out of the reach of young people.
- Sharp objects
Teach young people how to use sharp objects safely. Supervise them appropriately throughout. Store all sharp objects securely, out of the reach of young people.
- Vary how much people have to figure out for themselves, for example by giving them fewer instructions.
- People could decorate their card with pens or stickers.
If anyone struggles to cut pieces out, you could prepare pieces in advance.
All Scout activities should be inclusive and accessible.
