The thicker the material, the more energy it will absorb. That's why it's easier to see through a thin frosting of ice on your window than to see through a thick block of ice. A translucent material allows some light to shine through, but scatters the rays so much that you can't see clearly through it. Colored glass or white gauzy fabric are examples of translucency. An opaque material lets no light through.
Most metals are opaque.
They may reflect light, but they don't let light pass through them. Look around your classroom for examples of transparent, translucent, and opaque materials. Hold the objects up to a light to test them. Try a lampshade, a book, eyeglasses, a photographic slide, a plant leaf or petal, a ruler, a piece of paper, and a glass of water. In the 1700s, the British scientist William Herschel discovered that different colors had different temperatures.