Why is my shadow purple in color? - Lights and Shadows Exploration

Sid and Nidhi (3.5 years) have been long interested in shadows and their interest peeked through shadow puppets play. If you have been following us on Facebook, you might remember our hand shadow play.

They were excited to make some interesting observations with their own little experiments. Here is a photo journal of their exploration.

Nidhi observed "Hey Mom!Look! My shadow is purple in color!".

Look! My shadow is purple in color!

Wondering if shadows do everything that you do.

Do shadows hold hands if you do?

Both observing that the position of shadow changes with direction of light.

The shadow is in front of us now!

Nidhi exploring "How does it feel to touch my shadow?". "See, my shadow is shaking hands with me", she exclaimed.

Can you shake hands with your shadow?

Sid experimenting with gravity. He wondered "What will my shadow do if I stood upside down?".

What will happen to your shadow if you stand upside down?

Nidhi started running and observed that her shadow ran along. She wondered "Can I lose my shadow if I ran fast enough?".

Can you outrun your shadow?

To take the exploration further we read the books

1. Light, Mirrors, Shadows and Rainbows

2. The Black Rabbit

3. Whose shadow is it?

The book on Light, Mirror, Shadows and Rainbows provoked them to try creating a rainbow. We created beautiful bright rainbows using flash light and an old CD.

Look! I am a butterfly with rainbow wings!

They explored that the position of rainbow changes with angle of light on the CD.

Sid and Nidhi have been doing a lot of exploration with flash light in a dark room since then.

They figured out that the size of shadow changes when they move near to or away from light source.

Nidhi observed that the shadow gets lighter when there are two overlapped light sources but gets sharp and darker when there is only one light source.

They observed that the number of shadows depend on number of light sources.

Such a simple exploration yet so much of thinking, huge learning and discovery opportunities.

"When a curious child and a knowledgeable teacher explore the phenomena of the real world, genuine science begins."

-Frances Hawkins 

Now, here is an interesting question for you. Are shadows always black? As Nidhi observed, why is her shadow purple in color in this photo below? (Hint: It was an early evening before sunset and the park's halogen lights were on.)

"Purple Shadow"

Drop your answers in the comments section below if you would like to join us in this inquiry journey.