Light Play: Reflection vs Refraction

Harness the power of the sun and CONNETIX to create dazzling, sparkling reflections and refractions. Allow children to explore light, colour, transparency/opacity, rays, prisms and so much more all through play!



Children are natural scientists and engineers – they are explorative and creative, working out how the world works through their experiences. Through play, we can tune into children’s natural curiosities, and facilitate making explicit links in their enquiries and learning.

Playing with light is one of the first games children enjoy. After all, what is the game of peek-a-boo so beloved of infants but babies discovering that light transmits information? When the light is blocked (a hand covers a face) the photons of light transmitting the shape of that face are also blocked. Newborns experience these vanishings and reappearances as surprise because they haven’t yet grasped how seeing really works.



Older children are likely to enjoy more complex demonstrations of what light can do. By exploring this through CONNETIX play, you’re not necessarily trying to instil an intricate understanding of physics in your toddler. Instead, it is about the play and exploration opportunities. You’re simply giving them the experience of something universal and fun they can experiment with – light.



Two of the simplest behaviours of light you can demonstrate are reflection and refraction. Let’s refresh our physics knowledge and explore the different possibilities of the two phenomena.

Mirror, mirror on the wall! A reflection is the return of light or sound waves from a surface.



Children can explore reflections through play and everyday experiences – such as mirror or CONNETIX play. For example, you can demonstrate that mirrors reflect images because they bounce light, by literally demonstrating light bouncing! You can try this in a dimly lit room with a mirror and a torch, or even a window and sunbeam. Play a game where your child tries to follow or catch a reflected beam of light off a CONNETIX.



CONNETIX have a unique bevel design, and due to this, you will often notice reflections as light bounces off and creates dazzling, glittering patterns on the nearby floor/ walls.



Some ways to explore reflections with CONNETIX include:



• Pair your CONNETIX with Animal figurines. You can explore how the animal reflections can be seen in the tiles, and how the animals create shadows once light shines on them.
• Lay a mirror on the floor and build ontop of it with CONNETIX. The reflections create the most amazing illusions. This is a great activity to try outside too!
• Create a CONNETIX Wall by a window when the sun is shining. You will likely experience the light reflecting off one side (causing a shimmering, glittery effect around the room) PLUS refracting on the opposite side!