Curved+Mirror+Group+Activity

Matt Schuchhardt, 12/14/10
 * Author & Date:**

Curved mirrors - concave and complex
 * Topic/Concept:**

Simple on-paper group activity
 * Type of Activity:**

Law of refraction Light doesn't behave as one 'ray'; actually a collection of them
 * Prerequisite knowledge:**

Paper Concave/convex mirrors for demonstration (optional)
 * Materials Needed:**

Students will be able to draw the reflected light rays in convex/concave mirrors. Students will be able to understand what a focal point means Students will be able to explain what an image will look like with both mirrors, and either inside/outside the focal point.
 * Learning Goals:**

Difficulty in drawing normal lines Not drawing the resulting lines with the same angle as the incoming lines
 * Common Misconceptions:**

__As a class__ First have a student come up and draw how a light ray at an angle would reflect off of a flat mirror (which is standing up straight: | ) Then, have another student try to draw the resulting light ray when the mirror is at an angle (like this: / ) Next, take three mirrors, and as a group, have the students draw how three parallel light rays would reflect off of this arrangement. The mirrors should be arranged like the following:
 * Detailed Description of Activity:**

\ / (basically, just three plane mirrors in a concave arrangement)

Help out the groups so that they all end up with the correct diagrams. Explain that the focal point is where all of the light rays meet. Explain that a curved mirror is really just an infinite amount of plane mirrors (as above). Do a similar activity with concave mirrors.

Have the students discuss how the resulting image would look in the various arrangements.

Assessment is done by teacher while the students work
 * Assessment:**