Sunlight & WarmthNGSS* K-PS3-210–15 min

Shade Builders

Build a shade that keeps an ice cube from melting. A narrated sunlight lab for kindergarten.

Open the lab Try the free lab

“Shade Builders! Build a shade to keep an ice cube from melting.”

An ice cube on a plate on a sunny patio, next to a folded umbrella

In the lab

What your child does

Sees an umbrella slow an ice cube's melting; builds clear-plastic, paper and cardboard roofs next to an ice cube with no roof (a fair test); compares how big each cube stays; then improves a design when a low, sideways sun makes a small roof's shadow miss the ice.

1
Wonder
An ice cube melts on a sunny patio. Tap the umbrella: it opens, casts shade, and the melting almost stops.
2
Guess
Which roof will make the best shade: clear plastic, paper or cardboard?
3
Build and test
Four ice cubes. One gets no roof (the comparison). Tap a roof to put it on each stick frame. Tap the sun: morning turns to noon, and each cube melts according to how much light gets through. Tap each cube to check it: big, medium, small or melted.
4
Think
Which roof kept the ice biggest? (Cardboard.) Which didn't help much? (Clear plastic.)
5
Improve
The sun is low and to the side, so shadows fall far over. A small roof's shadow misses the ice and it melts; a bigger roof covers it.
Badge
The big ideas in a sentence, a badge, and a printable lab record.

A beach umbrella shading an ice cube on a patio — Wonder: an umbrella's shade slows the melting

Four ice cubes, three of them under stick frames with different roofs — Build: clear plastic, paper and cardboard roofs

A chart of melted, small, medium and big ice cubes — Test: which roof kept the ice biggest?

A wide table-like roof casting shade over an ice cube — Improve: a bigger roof for a low sun

The standard

K-PS3-2*

Children use tools and materials to design and build a structure (like an umbrella, canopy or tent) that reduces the warming effect of sunlight on an area.

Core idea: Energy
Science practice: Constructing Explanations and Designing Solutions
Grade: Kindergarten (ages 5–6)

Read K-PS3-2 on nextgenscience.org

For grown-ups

Talk about it

"Why did the cardboard work best?"
"Why didn't the clear roof help?"
"Where do people build shade?" (porches, bus stops, tents, sun hats)

Try it for real

Put ice cubes on plates outside on a sunny day. Prop up roofs of clear wrap, paper and cardboard on blocks or cups, leave one cube uncovered, and check them every 10 minutes.

Sunlight & Warmth