This task is about reflection on different surfaces.
Look at your reflection on the back of a spoon and in the mirror. Move the spoon or mirror close to your face and then far away.
Task administration:
This task can be completed with pencil and paper or online.
Equipment
Flat hand-mirror; large shiny spoon (this needs to be a new spoon in which a reflection can be clearly seen).
This task requires students to describe the image seen in a flat mirror and a convex mirror (spoon) and to explain why the reflection might be different.
This task can be done in pairs.
An extension would be to ask students for situations where it would be appropriate to use these mirror types.
You may need to explain the requirements of describing the reflection, i.e., this is about distorted/not distorted, reversed/not reversed, etc., of the image.
Students describe the images seen in flat and convex mirrors.
Curriculum Links:
Science capabilities
The capabilities focus is brought about by the conversations you have and the questions you ask.
Capability: Gather and interpret data
This resource provides opportunities to discuss when we look very carefully and notice lots of things it helps us describe how things are similar and different.
The image in the mirror is the same shape (same proportions) as you, i.e., it is not distorted.
The image in the spoon is out of proportion/distorted, or a description of.
b)
The back of a spoon is curved and this alters the image (curved reflective surfaces do not give reflections/images that are the same size as the object reflected).
or
Flat mirrors give reflections/images that are the same shape as the object reflected.
