They cave in toward the center. Things look smaller through a concave lens. Concave lenses make light rays bend outward or diverge. A concave lens will spread a beam of light on a surface. In this activity students will explore and discover the properties of the two basic types of lenses.
Students can work individually, in pairs, or in small groups.
This can be an activity guided by the teacher or students can work independently using the Student Page as a guide. After distributing the materials, allow students ample time to explore the materials freely. Ask students to look closely at the lenses and describe how the lenses are shaped. Introduce the terms convex and concave for the two different types of lenses. As students discover new things about how we look at objects, have them write their discoveries in their Science Notebooks.