Year 6 - Stillness Juniors Knowledge Organiser - Light - Key Vocabulary and Key Knowledge

Sep 28, 2026

Uploaded by Mimi

Year 6 knowledge organiser summarizing core concepts of light, reflection, and refraction with clear key vocabulary and definitions. It explains the law of reflection, defining incident and reflected rays, angles of incidence and reflection, and the role of the normal line. It then covers how light travels (as rays in straight lines and as waves that can travel through a vacuum), visible light and the spectrum produced using a prism. Finally, it defines prism, transparent, translucent, opaque, shadow, and connects refraction to light bending when moving between media.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryExam

FormatPDF

Pages2

Reading Time5 min

AccessFree to download

Light

Key Vocabulary

Key Knowledge

Reflection

Visible Light and the Spectrum

Refraction

Transparent, Translucent, Opaque and Shadows

Year 6 – Stillness Juniors Knowledge Organiser-Light Key Vocabulary Key Knowledge light light source reflection incident ray reflected ray the law of reflection The law of reflection states that the angle of incidence is equal to the angle of reflection. Whenever light is reflected from a surface, it obeys this law. A form of energy that travels ina wave rom a source. An object that makes its own light. Reflection is when light bounces off a surface, changing the direction of a ray of light. A ray of light that hits a A ray of light that has bounced back after hitting a surface The law states that the angle of the incident ray is equal to the angle of the reflected ray. We need light to be able to see things. Light waves travel out from sources of light in straight lines. These lines are often called rays or beams of light. Light from the sun travels in a straight line and hits the chair. The light ray is then reflected off the chair and travels in a straight line to the girl’s eye, enabling her to see the chair. The angle of reflection is the angle between the normal line and the reflected ray light. The angle of incidence is the angle between the normal line and the incident ray of light. angle of reflection reflected ray normal line incident ray angle of incidence Light travels as a wave. But unlike waves of water or sound waves, it does not need a medium to travel through. This means light can travel through a vacuum -a completely airless space. Key Vocabulary refraction visible spectrum Year 6 – Stillness Juniors Knowledge Organiser-Light Key Knowledge This is when light bends as it passes from one medium to another. E.g Light bends when it moves from air into water. Light that is visible to the human eye. It is made up of a colour Isaac Newton shone a light through a transparent prism, separating out light into the colours of the rainbow (red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo and violet) -the colours of the spectrum. All the colours together merge and make visible light. prism shadow transparent translucent opaque A prism is a solid 3D shape with flat sides. The two ends are an equal shape and size. A transparent prism separates out visible light into all the colours of the spectrum. An area of darkness where light has been blocked. Describes objects that let light travel through them easily, meaning you can see through the object. Describes objects that let some light through, but scatters the light so we can’t see through them properly. Describes objects that do not let any light pass through them. The spoon in this water looks as if it is bent. This is because light bends when it moves from air to water. When light bends in this way, it is called refraction. A shadow is always the same shape asthe object that casts it. This is because when an opaque object is in the path of light travelling from a light source, it will block the light rays that hit it, while the rest of the light can continue travelling. Shadows can also be elongated or shortened depending on the angle of the light source. A shadow is also larger when the object is closer to the light source. This is because it blocks more of the

FAQs

What does the law of reflection say?

The law of reflection states that the angle of incidence equals the angle of reflection. Light reflected from a surface obeys this rule.

How can we see objects?

We need light to see things. Light waves travel from sources in straight lines often called rays or beams of light.

What is refraction?

Refraction is when light bends as it passes from one medium to another, such as light moving from air into water.

Sep 28, 2026

Uploaded by Mimi