Each Teacher Guide includes:

• Lesson Plans
• Paperback copy of the storybook Omar's Time to Shine
• Teacher Background Information
• Assessment Tools
• English Language Learner suggestions

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This unit and storybook introduce students to the field of optical engineering and some of the properties of light. In the storybook, Omar, a boy from Egypt, learns about optical engineering from his older brother, Zane. Zane is working to block light from reaching and fading some of the heiroglyphs in an ancient Egyptian tomb. All of Omar’s optical engineering knowledge is put to good use when a brownout occurs just before a school production is set to take the stage. Omar saves the day by using what he’s learned to design a lighting system to highlight the performers in the show.

Students will think like optical engineers as they explore how light interacts with a variety of materials (specifically observing reflection, transmission, and absorption). Then, students will use what they’ve learned about materials, light, how light moves, and the intensity of light in order to design a system to light heiroglyphs in a model tomb.

• FOSS Connections: Matter and Energy, Human Brain and Senses
• STC Connections: Light