ScienceFreePrintable

Light in Different Cultures

A free science worksheet ready for your classroom. Open in Kuraplan to grab the print-ready PDF, customize it for your students, or generate a fresh version in seconds.

Download now

Name:Date:

Light in Different Cultures

Read the short text and study the visuals. Answer the questions using evidence from the text and your knowledge of light. Cultural traditions are diverse; the examples here are only a small selection.

A short reading

Light has physical properties and can also carry cultural meaning. In te ao Māori, Te Ao Mārama is often understood as the world of light and life, associated in Māori traditions with the separation of Ranginui (the sky) and Papatūānuku (the earth). Matariki, the cluster of stars that becomes visible in the midwinter sky, is an important time for many Māori communities to remember those who have died, celebrate the present and plan for the future. Diwali is celebrated by many Hindus, Jains, Sikhs and some Buddhists; lamps and other lights are among its traditions, with meanings that vary between communities. Hanukkah is a Jewish festival during which candles are lit over eight nights. In each example, light can have particular cultural or spiritual meanings. In physics, visible light is a form of energy. It travels in straight lines through a uniform material, can reflect from surfaces and can change direction when it passes between materials. A flame or lamp produces light; the Moon and stars are visible because their light reaches our eyes.

1.According to the reading, what is one idea represented by Te Ao Mārama?

2.Name one light-related practice from either Diwali or Hanukkah in the reading, and state which tradition it belongs to.

3.According to the reading, which objects produce their own light: a lamp, the stars, or both?

The lamp only
The stars only
Both the lamp and the stars
Neither; they only reflect light

4.The Moon is visible in the night sky. Based on the reading, is it a light source that produces its own visible light, or an object seen because light reaches our eyes from it?

5.A lamp shines on a mirror, and reflected light reaches an eye. Describe the path of the light.

6.Light travelling through a uniform material generally travels in straight lines. Write true or false, then give one example or reason.

TrueFalse

7.A polished metal tray is placed near a lamp. Explain why someone might see the lamp in the tray.

8.During a midwinter gathering, a person looks at a star. Describe the path light takes for the person to see the star.

9.A candle is lit during a cultural celebration. Give one scientific description of what the candle does and one possible cultural meaning of light. Do not assume the meaning is the same for every community.

10.Compare one way Matariki and either Diwali or Hanukkah connect people with light. Include one detail from the reading and explain why the practices should not be treated as identical.