Illuminate: How science comes to light - For schools

This playful interactive exhibition has a vibrant festival theme that engages the senses and lets students discover through doing.

What is light, what can we do with it and how do we see?

Students will explore these questions and more drawn by colour, sound and activity. There are six festival zones, each exploring a different aspect of sight and light, as well as a rest zone for students to regroup and relax.

They will be encouraged to bend light, manipulate colour, dance with shadows and transform reflections. With an array of open-ended interactives, students will be able to magnify, mix, animate, draw, design and compose – all with light!

Enlighten your students with this fun and educational exhibition.

Curriculum Links

Science as a human endeavour (F-2)
Chemical Sciences (F-4)
Physical sciences (F-6)
Design and Technologies (F-6)
Capabilities: Critical and creative thinking, Personal and social (F-6)

Teacher Resources

Teacher Resource Scienceworks Years 3 to 6

Resource: Why can't we see in the dark?

Students learn how to make a pinhole camera and/or a pinhole theatre and use this simple device to understand what happens when light enters our eyes.

Teacher Resource Scienceworks Years 2 to 4

Resource: What's cooking Sun?

Students are challenged to make a solar oven to cook a cheese toastie using basic materials found around the house or school.

Teacher Resource Scienceworks Years 1 to 4

Light up my world resource

Students design projections on buildings (represented by boxes), replicating projection systems used at festivals such as White Night or West Projection Festival.

Teacher Resource Scienceworks Years 3 to 6

Changing shadows and shadow play resource

Students play with shadows and learn about the type of shadows cast by opaque, translucent and transparent objects.

Explore the festival zones

Use this map to guide you through the Illuminate exhibition.

Wonder Vision

We see things because light reflects off objects and surfaces into our eyes.

Unseenery

Disappear behind an invisibility shield.

Science: Lenticular lens bends light for optical illusion of invisibility.

Inverse Eyeverse

Find out how we see by playing with this simple camera which turns things topsy-turvy.

Science: A simple camera shows how light forms an upside-down image at the back of our eye which our brain later inverts.

Turn Style

Make an animation by posing the figures and spinning the dance floor.

Science: Fast turning mirrors create reflective frames which blur into motion

Sensor Sonic

Sensors act like a computer’s eyes.

Chroma Keys

Spin the dials and program music with colour!

Science: Colour sensors detect the reflected energy of light to determine the colour. Our eyes have cone shaped cells which are colour sensors.

Scanner Jam

Pick up barcode scanners and scan different patterns to create your own soundscape.

Science: Pattern sensors detect the reflected energy of light to determine areas of light and dark. Our eyes have rod shaped cells which are light sensors.

Laser Beats

Dance your way through an invisible laser forest to make percussive beats.

Science: Invisible focused and coherent light (LiDAR) can be used for breakbeam and distance sensing

The Refractory

Science: Lenses refract (bend) light.

Macro Micro

Bend light with lenses to see tiny things in BIG detail!

Science: Different shaped lenses bend light to make objects appear in more detail. Stacking several lenses creates an even more zoomed in view.

Mega Heads

Duck into a perception changing, light-bending, magnifying lens booth.

Science: Fresnel lenses are special flat lenses which can magnify objects or focus light

Mirror Mirror

Science: Mirrors are special light reflectors.

Kaleidoscope

Create a disco of patterns, colour and faces with a giant kaleidoscope and large-scale projection.

Science: Beautiful symmetrical patterns are seen as light enters the kaleidoscope and bounces back and forth creating mirror images of mirror images.

Reflect Yourself

Experiment with your appearance with a mix of image morphing mirrors!

Science: Different shaped mirrors can converge or diverge reflected light and warp your appearance.

Chroma Zone

Science: Additive and subtractive colour mixing.

Colour Connections

Use tubes and shapes to connect and blend coloured lights.

Science: Adding wavelengths of light together creates lighter and lighter colours until you get white light

Pixel Mixer

Create new pixel art by stacking and mixing different coloured translucent pieces.

Science: Filtering or absorbing wavelengths creates darker colours until you get black.

Light & Shade

Science: Light travels in a straight line, when it’s blocked, a shadow is cast.

Shadow Stage

Gather your friends on stage and dance with shadows!

Science: Opaque materials block all the light, translucent materials let some light through, transparent materials let most of the light through.

The Gathering

Sit under a calming canopy of lights in the centre of the exhibition where you can watch others play and recharge.