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Interactive
American Museum of Natural History

Optical Illusions and How They Work

For Students 6th - 12th
Illusions are what your mind makes them. Learners view several optical illusions. After each illusion the resource describes what is seen and the potential connection to evolution of the brain. Illusions include seeing different objects...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Seeing is Believing - Or Is It?

For Teachers 5th - 6th
Here is a great science lesson. It extends the concept of vision into the area of optical illusions, perspective, and tessellation. This well-designed plan has tons of great activities, utilizes interesting video, and should lead to a...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Geometric Optic Spinner

For Teachers K - 5th
Young scholars investigate the concept of an optical illusion and how they are used. They conduct an information search of how the eye works. The information is used in order to set the context upon the creation of a personal optical...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Optical Delusion

For Teachers 4th - 11th
Learners examine and create a tool that enables them to explore the scientific principle the Moire Effect. Using markers, paper, and scissors, they create an optical illusion that involves superimposing a grid of lines over another...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Geometric Illusion Banners

For Teachers 4th - 6th
Students explore the composition of 3-D optical illusions by analyzing and combining 2-D visual elements graphically in banner form. They dissect the designs to undercover the mathematical elements of the illusion.
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Activity
Exploratorium

Squirming Palm

For Teachers 4th - 8th
You will need an electric drill and some Velcro™ in order to have this activity available for your class. It is, however, an intriguing display of optical illusion. After watching a spinning disk (provided), viewers look at one of their...
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PPT
Jefferson Lab

Optics: Mirrors and Lenses

For Students 9th - 12th
Did you see that or did I imagine it? Optical illusions are often created with mirrors and lenses, and here is a presentation that covers many different types of mirrors and lenses and how they work. Flat, concave, and convex mirrors, as...
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Worksheet
Curated OER

Studying our Senses

For Students 4th - 6th
Who would not want an opportunity to taste jellybeans in class?  During this investigation, life science learners hold their noses as they take a taste test and find that our perception of flavor is connected with our sense of smell. In...
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Activity
Exploratorium

Depth Spinner

For Teachers 4th - 8th
Put a new twist on your collection of optical illusion activities. Affix the linked printable spiral to a drill, record player, or some other rotating tool. Have learners stare at the spinning disk for only 15 seconds and then look away....
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Optical Illusions

For Teachers 6th - 9th
Students view, identify, and construct four optical illusions. In this optical illusions lesson plan, students are introduced to four types of optical illusions. They construct their own illusions.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Optical Illusion Vase

For Teachers 6th - 10th
Students draw an optical illusion. In this optical illusion instructional activity, students create the optical illusion vase. Students draw a profile and repeat the drawing in reverse creating the vase image.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Optical Illusions

For Teachers 2nd - 3rd
Students investigate optical illusions. In this optical illusions lesson plan, students explore perception. Students analyze optical illusions and determine common misconceptions.
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PPT
Curated OER

Op Art Shapes

For Teachers 4th - 7th
Op art is fun to look at, and it's fun to make. Kids learn about the origins of op art and the op art master, M.C. Escher. They view simple to complex examples of op art to see how it works and then create an optical piece of their own....
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Lesson Planet Article
Curated OER

Using Optical Illusion Brain Teasers Add a Twist to Math and Science

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Optical illusion activities can provide a motivating way for students to explore math and science concepts.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Applied Science - Science and Math Post-Lab

For Teachers 2nd - 8th
Students explore optical illusions. In this Applied Science lesson, students view optical illusions and record the data of what they see. Students graph the data that they collect.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Light, Colors, and Vision

For Teachers 3rd
Third graders experience optic illusions by creating flipbooks. In this optics lesson plan, 3rd graders view a demonstration of the workings of rods and cones using a camera. They are shown an optical illusion and work to create their...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Optical Illusion

For Teachers 8th - 10th
Students practice creating optical illusions as well as discerning how perception of information may change its characteristics. They distinguish between an equilateral triangle, endpoints, vertices's, and segments of triangles. The...
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Activity
Curated OER

Benham's Disk

For Teachers 3rd - 8th
Seeing is believing! Or is it? With this simple experiment, young scientists can explore the concept of visual perception. Attach Benham's disk to a rotating appliance such as a hand drill; As it spins, the black lines appear to be...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Intro to Art

For Teachers 3rd - 9th
Learners explore illusions by drawing and viewing images in class. In this art perspective lesson plan, students analyze a skeleton outline drawing which demonstrates the ability to draw in a two point perspective. Learners utilize the...
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Activity
Exploratorium

Jacques Cousteau in Seashells

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Visionaries create images out of dots to demonstrate the eye-brain connection. Through this activity, they learn that the brain interprets data collected by the eye into recognizable information. Search online for "Jacques Cousteau in...
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Lesson Plan
University of Minnesota

Beautiful Brain: Do You See What I See?

For Teachers 5th - 9th Standards
Can art play tricks on your eyes, and can a still painting really appear to vibrate? The second instructional activity in a four-part series discusses the way our beautiful brains translate visual images. It highlights the style of...
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Worksheet
Curated OER

Optical Illusions with Geometry

For Students 4th - 6th
For this optical illusions worksheet, students try to draw the illusion asked and discuss more illusions with their classmates. Students answer 4 problems.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Components of Light

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Middle schoolers are given a mnemonic device to review the light spectrum as it relates to the different components of refracted light. For this components of light lesson, students read Light Magic and review the properties of light....
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Activity
Exploratorium

Far Out Corners

For Teachers 4th - 6th
Construct a three-dimensional optical illusion when your class is exploring vision and how the eye and brain work together. Three concave corners are mounted inside of a black box, but as a light is shined upon them, they appear to be...

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