While summers are traditionally full of water, sun, and family vacations, there is still plenty of time left for exploring God’s marvelous world. Spark your child’s desire to learn about the world around them with some hands-on science. I’d like to introduce you to a brand new summer science program from A Reason For®. Today, I’ll be sharing a lesson from their Light Explorer Science Camp Kit. Inside the kit is everything you need to learn how rainbows make color.

I love a good thunderstorm. There is something that captivates me as the rain pours down and thunder rattles the windows. Then, as suddenly as it started, it stops, and the sun comes out again. Occasionally, we are blessed to see a brilliant rainbow spreading its arms across the sky like an embrace from God Himself, reminding us of His promises and love. Gather up the kiddos now, and let’s jump into the lesson.

Light travels in waves called wavelengths, and it’s when that light is bent that we are able to see different colors. Crack open your Summer Science Camp kit to find all the materials you will need for this experiment. First, you will find light slicer glasses. These glasses are really cool. Acting as prisms, they bend light, enabling you to see rainbows all around you. Bending light like this is called refraction. Refraction enables our eyes to see the varying wavelengths as different colors. If these terms are new to your children, have them quickly jot down any new vocabulary words in the spiral-bound Science Journal that comes with the kit.

Here comes the fun part. Before your child dons the light slicer glasses, have them look around the room, or up into the sky, to see if they can spot any rainbows. Now have them close their eyes while putting on the glasses. Tell them to open their eyes and look again. This time, they will ooh and ahh, dazzled by rainbows shimmering around every available light source. Don’t be surprised if all your kids, like mine, are determined to be the first to watch July 4th fireworks with these glasses!

Once everyone’s taken a turn (including Mom!), let your child record their results in their Science Journal. Discuss their different hypotheses of why they think the glasses help them see colors they didn’t see without them. Encourage them to draw pictures of what they saw—feel free to bring out the crayons, colored pencils, or even watercolors. Engaging their different senses will help the science to really soak in and be retained.

Once you’ve talked through the lesson, you can expand their knowledge even more by pointing out other prisms we encounter in the natural world. Rainbows make colors the same way the glasses do. Water droplets act like miniature prisms, too.

Do your children know the colors of the rainbow? An easy way to remember them in order is the acronym Roy G. Biv: Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Indigo, and Violet. Chant it with them, or maybe clap your hands or make up a fun song to accompany it for younger children.

Every lesson of nature ties back easily to our Creator. What better way to involve children in the Scriptures than to make them relevant, bringing them into the natural world? I love the way all the A Reason For® curriculum (and that includes the Handwriting, Spelling and Guided Reading programs, too, not only the Science) ties back to the Word, emphasizing the link between creation and Creator. Open your Bible with your children to Genesis, and share the origins of the very first rainbow. Read Genesis 9:13:

 “I have placed my rainbow in the clouds. It is the sign of my covenant with you and with all the earth.” (NLT)

Explain that, more than just a beautiful splash of color, the rainbow reminds us that God keeps His promises. He promised to never again flood the entire earth with water. Every word He says is embedded with power and creative energy to accomplish its task. And, rather than handing that promise down on a tablet, or through a loud, booming voice, God wrote it into the laws of Creation: a reminder of His faithfulness and His creativity. That’s something to remember this summer.

What better way to involve children in the Scriptures than to make them relevant, bringing them into the natural world? Click To Tweet

Thank you for walking through this lesson with me. Be sure to check out the new Science Camp kits at AReasonFor.com—there’s also one that explores Nature, in addition to this Light kit—and dive into your summer with a science splash.

To purchase your own Science Camp Light Explorer or Nature Explorer kit, please visit www.AReasonFor.com or call 1.800.447.4332.
Pick-up in Siloam Springs, AR, is available Monday-Friday during regular business hours
(please place your order by phone if you wish to pick up locally).

 

Disclosure: Links in this post are not affiliate links. However,  A Reason For® is the sponsor of this website and did provide the Light Explorer Science Camp kit (student journal, teacher guidebook and materials kit) to Bridgitt and Wendy at no charge. Bridgitt and Wendy were not obligated to provide a positive review as a condition of receiving the Science Camp kit, nor were they compensated to do so.  The opinions expressed / implied by Bridgitt and Wendy (both in writing and in the video) are their own thoughts and observations after using A Reason For® Science Camp: Light Explorer materials as a home education resource.