Shadow Stage
Introduction: Shadow Stage
A shadow screen or shadow stage can be used to tell stories, set up mysterious or beautiful scenes, pose shadow puzzles, and learn about how light works.
Shadow Stage was developed as part of the Light and Shadow Workshop, using basic tools -- mirrors, lenses, and flashlights -- as the basis for explorations that can help build an intuitive understanding of how light works. Designed for out-of-school-time educators, the workshop is easily adaptable to other educational settings. The activities also work well for remote learning, since most materials are readily available or can be supplied in a teaching kit.
Supplies
* Flashlight (The best flashlight to use is one with a single LED, see Step 4)
* A sheet of paper (tracing paper is ideal, but any paper or translucent material can work)
* Tape
* Scissors
* 2 cereal boxes (or a cardboard box larger than the sheet of paper, or recycled cardboard)
* Small household objects, toys, etc. as available
* Recycle cardboard and other materials as available
* Optional: paper fasteners (for articulated shadow puppets)
Be Safe: Do not look directly into the flashlight. Household LED flashlights can cause temporary vision spots. Do not use high-power or “tactical” flashlights, or laser pointers, for these activities.
Step 1: Build a Shadow Stage
There are many simple ways to build a shadow theater (search Instructables or on the web). Below is one fast and simple approach. Any of the materials can be substituted. The approach here uses a “rear projection screen” -- the light and shapes are behind a translucent screen (a sheet of paper), and the shadows are viewed from the “front” side of the screen. This approach is used in most traditional shadow puppet theaters, but most of the activities below also work if you just project the shadows on a wall or other surface.
There are three components to our simple shadow theater: supports, a screen, and a light source.
Step 2: Supports
Two cereal boxes can be used as ready-made supports to hold up your screen.
Of course, you can also make supports out of recycled cardboard, or any number of other materials.
Alternatively, you can use a cardboard box. This approach is a little more work, but it will help block excess light if you cannot darken your room. 644
Cut a hole in one side of the box, a bit smaller than a sheet of paper. Latter you will tape your screen over the hole and put your flashlight in the box, or cut a second hole for the flashlight if the box is too short.
Step 3: The Screen
Use a sheet of tracing paper, and tape it to the cereal boxes (or other supports).
Tracing paper is very translucent so it works well, especially if your flashlight is not very strong. Regular printer paper will also work. You can also use any other translucent fabric or material. A bigger screen may be better for puppet shows.
Step 4: Light Source
There are a few considerations in choosing a flashlight:
* Ideally use a flashlight with a single LED. This will produce a single shadow. Flashlights with many LEDs will produce many overlapping shadows -- this can be fun to experiment with, but they will not produce clear shadows.
* Choose a flashlight with a switch that will keep it on.
* Most flashlights have lenses and/or reflectors designed to form a focused beam. But the best light source for shadows is a “point source” (a single small light source without mirrors or lenses that complicate the path of the light). If you can do it safely, unscrew the front of the flashlight and take out any reflectors or lenses, then reattach the front.
Be Safe: If you are thinking about disassembling part of the flashlight make sure you/participants can do it safely and can resist putting fingers or other objects into the front of the flashlight when the lens is removed. Do not work with any light with high voltage, that plugs in, or where you do not understand how it works. Do not touch the LED or wires inside the flashlight. If you have any questions about its safety, do not disassemble the flashlight -- most flashlights will still work adequately for these activities.
Set up the flashlight so it shines onto the screen and you see a shadow on the screen when you place your hand between the flashlight and the screen.
You may want to make a stand out of cardboard to keep your flashlight in place.
You could also try experimenting with some other battery-powered light sources, for example, the LED lights sold for Halloween jack-o-lanterns, or LED candles.
Step 5: Using Your Shadow Theater
There are many ways to use your shadow theater, and all of them can let you experience different aspects of how light works. 98