Light and Shadows Quiz

Grade 3 · Science · Quiz

Test your knowledge of how light travels, reflects, refracts, and forms shadows.

Questions

What happens to a shadow when you move the object closer to the light source?
1. It gets smaller
2. It disappears
3. It gets larger
4. It stays the same size
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Answer: It gets larger
Moving an object closer to the light source makes its shadow larger because the object blocks more of the light's spread at a closer distance.
Frosted glass is an example of a translucent material.
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Answer: True
Frosted glass allows light through but scatters it, so you can see light but not clear images. That's the definition of translucent.
The bending of light as it moves from air into water is called ___.
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Answer: refraction
Refraction happens because light slows down when entering a denser medium like water or glass, causing it to bend. This is why a straw looks bent in a glass of water.
What does a mirror do to light?
1. Absorbs it
2. Refracts it into colors
3. Reflects it
4. Stops it completely
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Answer: Reflects it
Mirrors are polished surfaces designed to reflect light at precise angles, which is why they show clear reflections.
Shadows form on the same side of an object as the light source.
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Answer: False
Shadows form on the side OPPOSITE the light source. The object blocks light from reaching that area, leaving a darker region.
Which of these is an opaque object?
1. Clear window
2. Clean water
3. Frosted shower door
4. A wooden door
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Answer: A wooden door
A wooden door is opaque — no light passes through it. Clear windows are transparent, water is transparent, and frosted doors are translucent.
White light separated by a prism reveals all the colors of the ___.
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Answer: rainbow
The colors are always in the same order: red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, violet (ROYGBIV). Rainbows in the sky work by the same refraction principle.
Light travels at the same speed through glass as it does through air.
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Answer: False
Light slows down when moving through glass or water. This slowing is what causes refraction — light changes speed and direction when entering a new medium.
How does light travel?
1. In circles
2. In curved paths
3. In straight lines
4. In zigzag paths
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Answer: In straight lines
Light always travels in straight lines. This property is called rectilinear propagation and explains why we can't see around corners or behind opaque objects.
A solar eclipse happens when Earth's shadow falls on the Moon.
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Answer: False
A solar eclipse occurs when the MOON's shadow falls on Earth. A lunar eclipse is when Earth's shadow falls on the Moon.

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