What

Makes a
Rainbow?
A “Mini” Inquiry Unit for
Grade 1 Science

- --------------------
 Table of Contents

Unit Rationale Page 2

Curriculum Map Page 4

Unit Resources Page 6

Differentiation Plan Page 9

Unit-at-a-Glance Page 13

1
 Unit Rationale

Unit Title: What Makes a Rainbow?

Course: Science- Grade 1 (Topic A)
Length of Unit: 13 Days

Overview:
In this unit, our inquiry will focus around the essential question: What makes a rainbow?
Through this mini unit, students will build on their basic knowledge of colours and engage in an
inquiry that follows a gradual release of responsibility; students will begin with structured
inquiry, move into controlled inquiry, and finish the unit with a performance task that uses
aspects of guided inquiry. This mini unit will be 13 days long; we will begin by simply
wondering about rainbows and students will have the opportunity to let their mind wander and
come up with questions they might have. As this is an inquiry unit, these questions will help to
shape the direction and focus for the coming classes, so I have done this preliminary planning
with a high level of flexibility. Students will then get to engage in hands-on activities using the
colours of the rainbow, mixing and creating shades, to help set the tone in the classroom. We
will try to find colours in our classroom and do a Rainbow Writing activity. After this, we will
be joined by a rainbow expert (meteorologist) to give students an expert opinion on where
rainbows come from, and where the colours come from! This will push us to the next week of
our unit where students will engage in hands on activities all week to create rainbows using
different sources or light and other materials; they will be given the tools, but will have to
explore them first to see if they can figure it out. After students make predictions and try to
figure out the procedure, I will demonstrate the lab and students will keep a record in their
science notebook. Students will work in this notebook throughout our mini unit and practice
writing for informational purposes, where they will record predictions, observations and other
tasks that are related to the activity. This will promote a connection with science literacy. The
last 3 days of the unit will be spent exploring student wonders and reviewing what we know
about rainbows and colour. The final lesson of the unit will give students the opportunity to
experiment with various materials on their own and apply their knowledge to create their own
rainbows!
I have built this unit to be easily connected with other curricular areas for extension- the
most obvious connection I have created is with ELA. Students will develop their questioning
skills and work on developing early literacy skills while they gain the confidence to see
themselves as readers and writers. See the curriculum map for further explanation of Math and
Social Studies. I have also integrated Indigenous ways of knowing throughout this unit in a way
that allows for students to gain deeper understandings of the importance of colour. My hope is
2
that by showing students how colours can be seen to represent characteristics or feelings, they
might internalize this and strengthen their emotional intelligence and Social Emotional
Learning skills by identifying their feelings using colours instead of words, which can be
challenging for some students.
This unit is relevant for students because they engage with colours every day, and it is a
foundational area of knowledge. This unit does not follow a traditional structure, it supports a
hands-on approach where students are encouraged to ask questions and wonder about the topic.
This inquiry is unique, because students are engaging with the basic outcomes for Topic A, but
they are also going one step further to solidify the learning in an experience; this supports all
students but is particularly useful for ELL students. As the teacher, I do not know everything
about this subject, which makes it even more exciting for students because we are learning
together- I am not the keeper of knowledge, I am a learner, just like them!
See curriculum map for connections to the Nature of Science and everyday life.
This unit is designed as an extension of the Colours unit, so students will be familiar with the
names of colours, as well as how to make those colours.
The only “new” outcome will be 1-5.10.

Essential Questions:
Main Question: What makes a rainbow?
Sub-Questions:
- What do you wonder about rainbows?
- What colours are in a rainbow?
- What shades can we make out of rainbow colours?
- Where can we find rainbow colours in day to day life? What do the colours remind
you of?
- Where do rainbows come from? What are they made of?
- Where do colours come from?
- How can we make rainbows using: mirrors, water, prisms, and CDs?
- How can you create your own rainbow?
- Please note that these are general questions… remain flexible and respond to
students’ “wonders” by altering lessons or focus points in order to make learning
more meaningful. Be sure to generate more questions WITH students.
o What are students wondering about?

3
 Curriculum Map

Grade 1- Science Outcomes

1-1 Bring focus to investigate activities, based on their own questions and
those of others.
1-2 Describe materials and objects that have been observed and
manipulated and identify what was done and found out.
Students will:
o Focus
 Ask questions that lead to exploration and investigation
 Predict what they think will happen or what they might find
Skills o Explore and Investigate
 Manipulate materials and make observations that are relevant
to questions asked
 Recognize and describe steps followed
o Reflect and Interpret
 Describe what was observed, using pictures and oral
language
 Identify questions being investigated and identify what was
learned about each question

1-4 Demonstrate positive attitudes for the study of science and for the
application of science in responsible ways.
Students will show growth in acquiring and applying the following traits:
- Curiosity
Attitudes - Inventiveness
- Confidence
- Appreciation

Understanding 1-5 Identify and evaluate methods for creating colour and for applying
colours to different materials.
Students will…
1. Identify colours in a variety of natural and manufactured objects.
4. Predict and describe changes in colour that result from the mixing of
primary colours and from mixing a primary colour with white or with
black.

4
 10. Demonstrate at least one way to separate sunlight into component
colours.

How does this topic relate to other science topics/units in earlier science courses?
This unit is designed for grade 1, so there are not any Science courses in the curriculum that would
connect with this. That being said, students will likely have had interactions with the colours in
Kindergarten if they went. Students would likely be familiar with rainbows and colours, but we can’t
take any experiences for granted. Teach like students might not know at all.

How does this topic relate to other science topics/units in later science courses?
This topic will relate to Topic D, Lights and Shadows, for Grade 4. This mini unit could be connected
with the grade 4 curriculum because part of the Lights and Shadows unit is recognizing that light can be
broken into different colours. This connects to the final activity where students will work to create a
rainbow using light sources and other materials. The grade 4 unit also talks about mixing the colours of
light to create new ones, which could loosely connect with grade 1 students mixing colours of paint to
create their rainbow.

How does this topic relate to other subjects in the same grade level?
Cross-curricular connections are extremely important, especially for early elementary, because it
provides a deeper meaning to the learning. Within this unit there will be many cross-curricular
connections with ELA, because students will begin to develop literacy skills associated with asking
questions, beginning to write for non-narrative purposes, as well as the development of attitudes and
skills associated with group work and community building.
You could also take this unit one step further and connect it with Social Studies and talk about
communities- we often associate communities or countries with flags, and we could identify colours in
flags that identify a global community. You could also take it further and connect social studies and art
in order to have students create a larger scale rainbow art piece to bring joy into their community.
This unit would also be easy to connect with math; you could definitely create patterns using rainbow
colours, or even have students figure out how many parts of one colour, mixed with how many parts of
another colour would create the secondary colour (ex. 2 parts of red, with 1 part of blue, makes purple).

How does this topic relate to the world of science? And everyday life?
I feel like this unit connects with many aspects of the Nature of Science (NOS), in a way that helps
students to connect with the knowledge and skills they are acquiring in a meaningful way. By providing
students with many entry points into the science of rainbows, it shows students that there is no one way
to do science. Within this unit, students are keeping a science notebook which will build their skills and
help them recognize the importance of observation, questioning and proof/evidence. This unit also
challenges students to be creative while engaging with science- both creative when finding solutions and
when creating artistic representations of what they have seen or learned. Students will also be exposed to
different perspectives- from an expert, from different cultures, and from books, videos, and other media.
These differing perspectives will allow for students to see that many things contribute to our
understanding of colour and rainbows.
I feel like this unit connect to everyday life for students because they are surrounded by colours. Not
only that, but in the spring and summer it is quite common to see rainbows after it rains, and this gives
students the background knowledge to understand the science behind what is happening in the sky. This
unit also gives students an entry point to discover, notice, and wonder about other occurrences of
rainbows in their lives: have they ever blown bubbles and noticed rainbow colours? Have they ever gone
to the gas station and noticed a puddle that was streaked with rainbow colours? Etc. This unit will give
5
 students a lens in which to view colours and rainbows in their world; students will begin to notice the
beauty of rainbows in various forms, and recognize the connection to science, and in turn recognize the
beauty of science.

Unit Resources

Becker, A. (2019). You are light. Somerville, MA: Candlewick Studio.

This is a book I would use with students to introduce light and

colours. This book is very simple, yet beautiful and explores how
light influences the world and how it is necessary to create the
world we know. When this book is held up to the light, you can see the
coloured circles light up in a beautiful way. This book elicits
questioning and wonder, while encouraging students to think about
light. This is a book I would use when we begin experimenting and
playing with light to create our own rainbows.

George (Ningwakwe), P. (2004). The Rainbow/Holistic Approach to

Aboriginal Literacy. In Light onwords/light onwards: Living literacies: Text of the November 14-16, 2002
conference at York University (pp. 25-39). Toronto: Living Literacies Committee. Retrieved July 25,
2020.

This resource is actually an excerpt from a conference package about literacy. This particular section is by
Ningwakwe, who is an Anishnawbe woman, talks about an Aboriginal approach to literacy that has
outcomes for the mind, body, soul and heart. Through this she has developed a rainbow literacy
framework in which each colour of the rainbow represents a different area of literacy to focus on. For the
purposes of this unit, I found her descriptions of the colours to be particularly useful. She has each colour
of the rainbow listed where she compiles different understandings of the colours from different
Indigenous communities to produce a common understanding. Each colour has symbolism behind it, and I
thought this would be particularly useful knowledge throughout this unit to incorporate FNMI ways of
knowing. In addition to using the Indigenous understandings of colour, it would be beneficial to also have
the Blackfoot words for each colour displayed on the wall- you can find the names of colours and
pronunciations within the Piikani App (http://piikanicfs.ca/2017/08/22/piikani-paitapiiyssin-app/). This
resource is mostly for teacher knowledge, but the representations of colours are the most relevant aspects
for this unit.

Harris, T. (2002, May 28). How Rainbows Work. Retrieved July 25, 2020, from
https://science.howstuffworks.com/nature/climate-weather/storms/rainbow.htm
6
 This website is a great place to start learning about how rainbows are formed and where they come from.
This is essential knowledge for you, as the teacher, to have before engaging in this inquiry unit. This
webpage also has a great video on the introduction page that describes the process in a great way, and it
also shows how to separate light using a prism. This is something that you can do with students and
demonstrates it well for the teacher. It also gives some great questions to ponder that you can rephrase for
students. Definitely a great resource to learn more about rainbows before you teach about them.

Kane, K., & Acton, S. (2015). Esther's rainbow. Sydney: Allen & Unwin.

I love this book for introducing students to finding colours of the

rainbow in their every-day lives. This book follows Esther who sees a
rainbow poke out from her chair, and then explores her world to see if
she can find it again. She finds a different colour of the rainbow every
week and discovers colours in everything she sees. This book is a great
way to hook students into finding colours in their world, and it will also
support students in doing their rainbow writing. This is a book I would
read aloud, and then place on our bookshelf for students to peruse at
their leisure during reading time.

Lively, S. (2015, February 26). How to Make Rainbows at Home. Retrieved July 25, 2020, from
http://onetimethrough.com/how-to-make-rainbows-at-home/

I really liked this website and I listed it as a resource because it gives simple explanations of the ways to
make a rainbow using sources of light and other materials at home. These are all mini experiments that
can be adapted for classroom use when students begin their exploration of creating rainbows using light. I
appreciated how this website was written clearly and provided multiple different ways to approach the
experiments. I will use this website to help guide the beginning phases of planning for second week of the
mini unit, as well as add to my background knowledge of the process.

Llenas, A. (2018). The Colour Monster. London: Templar Publishing.

This book would be really helpful to explore in ELA, while still

connecting with this science unit. This book explores the colour
monster and how each colour represents different feelings; through
this, students build emotional intelligence skills and add to their
understanding of colour as more than just an object. I would re-read
this book with students around the same time that they are exploring
colours in day-to-day life with Esther’s Rainbow, and encourage
students to think of the colours as feelings in their rainbow writing as
well. This could easily be used on the flex day as well, or as an
extension of the rainbow unit.

M. (2013, October 5). Inquiring About Color. Retrieved July 25, 2020, from
http://mrsmyerskindergarten.blogspot.com/2013/10/inquiring-about-color.html

This is a blog post from a kindergarten teacher that highlights the various activities she did with her
students when they were doing a general inquiry about colours. I have chosen to include this resource here
7
 because it provides some very valuable ideas, some of which I altered and used within this unit. Her
inquiry unit on colour is based around experiments and hands on activities, including painting shades and
identifying colours and shades through found objects. This is something I am doing in this unit to build
our rainbow wall within the classroom. I will definitely keep this blog as a resource for future use in the
classroom.

MacKenzie, T. (2019). Dive into inquiry: Amplify learning and empower student voice. Victoria, BC:
ElevateBooksEdu.

This is a book I included for my resource list because it

provides a solid framekwork and explanation of the
inquiry process that is rooted in research and classroom
experience. This is a book that has helped me to
understand inquiry on a deeper level and come to
understand the how and why of inquiry learning. This book
also provides a framework for how to best support learners
at all levels and foster student agency in a way that is
attainable no matter how long you have been teaching.
This book also addresses the levels of inquiry that students
can engage in. This book is definitely one to have on my
shelf while I am teaching this unit and others!

Smith, K. (2015, April 24). A rainbow of writing. Retrieved July 25, 2020, from
http://adayinfirstgrade.com/2014/04/a-rainbow-of-writing.html

I included this website in my resources section because it inspired my “Rainbow Writing” activity that
students will be doing in the first week of the unit. This teacher used the activity to allow students to
access juicy words, but I would do something slightly different. I would alter this activity so it focuses
more on the objects or feelings that exhibit the colours of the rainbow; I would do this activity in
conjunction with reading Esther’s Rainbow, and then expand upon it by having students create a rainbow
through a watercolour activity. The watercolour rainbow and colour writing will be combined and
displayed on a bulletin board to expand the audience of their writing.

Wells, S. (2016, October 19). The Science of Rainbows. Retrieved July 25, 2020, from
https://ssec.si.edu/stemvisions-blog/science-rainbows

This is another website that would be used primarily to support your own knowledge of rainbows, but it is
beneficial as well because it gives a different perspective on rainbows and talks about the “magic” behind
them. By reading different perspectives of the science, it will allow for me to broaden my understanding
and present different perspectives to my students as well. This article also mentions that there are
ALWAYS two rainbows, and they are inverted from each other because of the second reflection that the
light goes through in the raindrop. This is something I never knew and would be great to share with
students!

In addition to these resources, another huge part of this unit is hooking students with engaging material. For the
first lesson it would be best to have a wide variety of pictures that show rainbows in different places and
highlight the differences and similarities between them. Have students complete a picture sort, a questioning
8
activity, or anything else that will get them thinking about rainbows. Choose pictures and videos of rainbows
that will inspire wonder and encourage students to ask questions to shape the direction of the unit. In addition to
this, another “resource” to be used in this unit is an actual rainbow expert! Bring an expert into the classroom to
talk to students about where rainbows come from. This gives students a new experience to attach their learning
and engages them with community members; the expert can be anyone in the community who specializes in
weather or light- ideally, it would be great to have a meteorologist from a local news station join the class! By
having an expert, you are giving students real world connections and potentially inspiring students to pursue
different interests that they might not have been exposed to outside of the classroom.

Differentiation Plan

Please see below for a list of potential exceptionalities, and how I would support those within the classroom.
I have included a brief overview of common exceptionalities but would tailor the differentiation for each
individual lesson to ensure all students can be successful in the science classroom.
I used many ideas from Inclusion of learners with exceptionalities in Canadian schools: A practical handbook
for teachers by Nancy Hutchinson, to support my differentiations and classroom supports.
I would consider many of these strategies to be beneficial for the entire classroom (Universal Design), but in
some cases like physical impairments the differentiations are specific to that student so they can have an
equitable learning experience; help students understand this by engaging in a Band-Aid activity (each student
comes up with a different injury, they all get a Band-Aid- will the Band-Aid fix your concussion? Your paper
cut? Your broken arm? Etc. Shows students that fair does not always mean the same.
This is something you would establish with students at the beginning of the year.

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder

 Use clear language at the beginning of an activity or lesson
 Post lists on white board- have visual cues so students remember what they are supposed to be doing.
This supports working memory struggles that these students may face. Use external memory aids.
 Model various strategies (this will help ALL students)- thinking, task completion, asking questions,
instructions, etc.
 Rephrase instructions in student’s language- use “kid friendly” words that are easy to understand and
don’t require a ton of decoding for them to source out meaning
 Explicitly teach social skills- like turn taking, teamwork, collaboration, etc.
 Guided practice- use a gradual release of responsibility model to ensure students feel confident
 Model self-regulation strategies- this can be in the moment, or for the whole class depending on the
needs of the students.

English Language Learners

 Follow basic guiding principles for ELL students- know who they are and recognize their past (are they
from an immigrant/refugee family?), know your community and work closely with them to ensure the
student feels welcomed, be patient and supportive.

9
  Use non-verbal communication to make the student feel safe and secure; encourage students to use their
first language at home and bring it into your teaching!
 Teach using vocabulary first- include LOTS of visual cues, use gestures, concrete materials, games,
puzzles, etc.
 Be VERY cognizant of any biases in your lessons- don’t assume they have or have not had different
experiences.
 Speak and instruct in short, simple sentences.
 Use individual instruction and support when you can- frequently check in during work time so the
student does not feel alone if they are struggling- confer, confer, confer!

Behavior Exceptionalities and Mental Health

 Build a strong relationship with the student- know what makes them tick, what sets them off, what
works for them in the moments when they flip their lid.
 Build a behavior plan with students- involve them in the conversation and in making the plan for times
when they flip their lid, or when they feel overwhelmed. This gives students a safe “exit strategy” when
they feel big emotions coming; also helps students to become mindful of what they are feeling.
 Build a strong support system at school and at home; make sure students feel like there is a safe adult
they can talk to any time.
 Use the ADAPT strategy (Account for student’s strengths and needs, reflect on Demands of the
classroom on students, Adaptations, Perspectives and consequences, Teach and assess the match)
 Explicitly teach pro-social behaviors; give students various spaces to learn in. Use tier 2 or 3
interventions if necessary, to support students- but ALWAYS maintain that relationship so they feel like
they are valued within the classroom.
 Focus on positive relationships and developing a safe place
 Teach skills through the curriculum to help students cope with various social situations

Learning Disability
 I have listed the most common LDs that students face; However, in grade 1 many students could
struggle with these. LDs don’t tend to be diagnosed until later in the student’s school career when they
cause a large deficit. That being said, many students may struggle in these areas in grade 1 and these
supports are extremely helpful even if the student does not have a diagnosed LD. Please note these are a
variety of strategies to teach through the mismatch, around the mismatch, and to overcome the
mismatch; each student is unique and will respond to differentiations in different ways.
 Reading (commonly dyslexia)
o Multisensory learning- use visual aids, tactile activities
o Colour transparency paper (helps students read the words- coloured paper disrupts the visual
stimulus between the white paper and black text
o Use word blockers during reading so students can focus on one word or sentence at a time
o Speech-to-text, or text-to-speech
o Early intervention and explicit teaching of phonics can be helpful for some students, but not all.
o Adapt the environment with visual cues and hand signals to help students differentiate between
sounds when reading.
 Writing (commonly dysgraphia)
o Reduce some of the writing load- offer alternatives to a fully written work (don’t get rid of all
challenge for students, it is important for them to practice writing- but they also need to learn.
When it becomes frustrating and they are flipping their lid because they cannot write their

10
 thoughts, it gets in the way of learning- this is when you should implement something like this in
the ECE classroom)
o Oral instructions, audio recording
o Scribe
o Adapt with different tools- pencil grips, slanted boards, raised paper
o Fine motor skill practice
 Math (commonly dyscalculia)
o Concrete-to-representational-to- abstract instruction: start with hands on manipulatives, then
move to pictures representing manipulatives, and then try to move into more abstract
representations.
o Graph paper can be helpful for students to line up numbers, draw shapes, etc.
o Teach self-talk during math; help them to slow down and think about the skill they are using.
Encourage asking for help when needed.
o Encourage visual representations.
 Organization (executive function)
o Have an agenda/schedule clearly posted- provide time warnings for the whole class (5 minutes
left, 2 minutes left, etc.) so transitions are not a surprise.
o Checklists during work time- students know what to do first, second, third, and last.
o Explicit teaching of time-management skills during free time- Lots and lots of reminders;
encourage students manage their time.

Gifted Students
 Enable students to explore their interests; use tiered assignments- give choice!
 Allow for enrichment activities built into the lesson (helpful for gifted students AND fast finishers)
 Open ended play, and academic work- don’t put them in a box.
 Give students authentic learning opportunities that relate to real-world problems
 Depending on where the students are at- it is proven that gifted students benefit from interaction with
their age group peers AND their intellectual peers.

Physical Impairments (vision, hearing, speech, motor)

 There are a wide variety of physical exceptionalities that you may come across. I have highlighted some
of the more common impairments, but please note that this is not exhaustive.
 Visual Impairments
o Alternate format texts; have access to braille, taped books, etc.
o Adaptive technology to assist students (this is usually provided for the student by the school)
o Larger print available for books and environmental text
o Extended time frames for completion
o Multi-sensory experiences
o Reduce glare in the classroom- natural lighting is helpful
o ALWAYS warn a student if something is moved
o Name students when they speak, provide non-visual feedback (a smile means nothing if the
student can’t see it)
o Peers as friends, not helpers
o Foster social inclusion in activities
 Hearing loss or hard of hearing
o Ensure students are seated in an area where acoustics are best; involve students in this decision.

11
 o Use visuals and handouts so students can follow along
o Spend a few moments reviewing new vocabulary with students prior to the lesson (this could be
done briefly before or after breaks)
o Outline class agenda in a place that is easy to see
o Pre-teaching and manipulatives are very beneficial
o Use sign language mixed with verbal cues whenever possible- students will benefit from learning
ASL; introduce bit by bit.
 Communication
o Create an accepting atmosphere; classroom culture that sees the beauty and benefit of our
differences. Safe and caring.
o Work closely with SLP
o Speak/ give instruction a bit slower and ensure clarity
o Graphic organizers
o Pre-teach academic vocabulary
 Physical disabilities or chronic health conditions
o Treat students like normal- do not underestimate their abilities to learn and participate.
o There are a variety of accommodations for students with physical disabilities; these are mostly
modifications to the environment.
o Be familiar with students and their condition- know what their “tells” are if they are prone to
seizures. Be cognizant of the environment and knowledgeable about ways to support different
disabilities and conditions
o A huge part of this is setting the classroom culture to be a safe and caring space.

Intellectual Disabilities
 Please note this category is quite large as well- many adaptations will be determined on a student-to-student
basis. There is a wide range of mild to severe intellectual disabilities- the following is a list of SOME
strategies that may be helpful.
o Discuss what will happen before it does- give time to process
o Structure play; help students make a plan, find peers, etc.
o Break tasks into smaller steps
o Simple phrasing when asking questions
o Encourage students to expand on their thoughts- more than “yes” and “no”
o Support language development through various literacy strategies
o High interest/ low vocabulary resources
o Simplify learning tasks where necessary- each student is unique
o Develop social stories to help students cope and interact with the environment throughout the
day

12
 Unit-at-a-Glance
Day 1- Monday
Essential
What do you wonder about rainbows?
Question
Skills Attitudes Understandings
1-1 Focus: ask
Outcomes questions that lead to
1-4 Curiosity -
exploration and
investigation & predict
Description This is the introductory lesson for the unit- students will be introduced to
the inquiry and participate in an “I Wonder…” session. Students will do a
gallery walk and view different photos of rainbows, flip through different
books about rainbows, and watch a video that shows various photos of
rainbows. As students take in the various materials, they will keep record
of their observations- what did they notice? What do they wonder about the
pictures? Etc. Students will then come together at the carpet and we will
have a brief discussion about the gallery walk. Students will each
contribute one thing (or more) that they are wondering about, and it will be
placed on the Wonder Wall for the unit. Once we complete the wonder
activity, we will create our own rainbow and finish off the class by
predicting what will happen when we put white flowers in coloured water.
13
 We will come back to this later in the week during a flex block to record
what happened to the flowers in science notebooks.
- Rainbow video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3NfMMDTSX98
- Various pictures of rainbows, printed for gallery walk
Resources
- Various rainbow books (fiction and non-fiction; choose based on
student ability)
- Rainbow daisies or roses (whichever flower is readily available- have
Activities/
all materials ready to go, place flowers in with students)
Assessment
- I wonder… (formative)
Day 2- Tuesday
Essential
What colours are in the rainbow?
Question
Skills Attitudes Understandings
1-2 Explore and
Outcomes Investigate: manipulate
1-3 Confidence 1-5.1, 1-5.4
materials and make
observations
During this lesson, students will identify the colours of the rainbow. They
will identify the primary and secondary colours through a table talk
activity; each table group will have a larger rainbow that they will need to
label, using the spelling from our colour wall. During this lesson, introduce
the Blackfoot words for each colour and add these words to the colour
Description wall. Ensure all students have a solid understanding of colour names
before doing this.
After students identify the colours, we will practice mixing colours to
match the rainbows. Once students mix the colours, they will paint them
onto a canvas, which we will use tomorrow. Save the rest of the paint that
is left over!
- Blackfoot names for colours
Resources
- Paint!! Primary colours only
Activities/ - Mixing colours (formative)
Assessment - Colour identification and Blackfoot names
Day 3- Wednesday
Essential
What shades can we make from rainbow colours?
Question
Skills Attitudes Understandings
1-2 Explore and
Outcomes Investigate: identify
1-4 Inventiveness 1-5.1, 1-5.4
materials used;
describe steps
Description During this class we will use the leftover paint colours we created
14
 yesterday and experiment with adding black or white to create different
shades of the colours. Students will then add different shades to their
canvas from yesterday. Each student will then have to find objects that are
different shades, lighter or darker, than their canvas and attach them once
the paint dries. These objects will be from a maker’s space, craft supplies,
etc. Make sure they are found objects- do not give them to students
separated by colour!! (e.g. if you have beads, keep them all mixed!).
- Paint from yesterday, plus black and white
Resources
- Found objects for canvases (stocked maker’s space, craft supplies, etc.)
Activities/ - Colour canvases; conference with students after to find out what
Assessment objects they chose and why. (formative)
Day 4- Thursday
Essential
Where can we find colours in daily life?
Question
Skills Attitudes Understandings
Outcomes 1-4 Curiosity and
- 1-5.1
Appreciation
At the beginning of this class, we will read Esther’s Rainbow, which will
open discussion of finding rainbow colours within our daily lives. After we
read the book and record what items Esther found, we will have a
discussion about what other things we know about that are the colours of
the rainbow. These will be recorded on a chart for easy access. After this,
Description
students will engage in a colour hunt around our classroom/ school and see
what they can find to fill up our colour lists. Students will then come
together and share what they found, and we will create a Rainbow poem
together as a class before they do it on their own (Red is like… Orange is
like… etc.) Students will then complete their own rainbow poems.
- Esther's Rainbow by Kim Kane
Resources - Rainbow writing paper (larger lines) and coloured markers
- Colour hunt sheet
Activities/
- Rainbow writing/ poem (summative)
Assessment
Day 5- Friday
Essential
Where do rainbows come from? What are they made of?
Question
Outcomes Skills Attitudes Understandings
1-2 Reflect and 1-4 Appreciation and 1-5.10
Interpret: identify Respect for the
questions being Environment
investigated and
identify what was
15
 learned
During this class we will have a Rainbow Expert join us; our expert will
talk to the students about where rainbows come from. Students will be
introduced to the idea that rainbows come from light and water; we will
learn about how they are formed, where they come from, and where they
Description
go when they disappear! After our expert visit, we will complete the
Rainbow Paper experiment so students can see the colour reflection from
sunlight. In the next ELA lesson, students will also complete a thank you
letter to the expert.
Resources - Materials for Rainbow Paper https://www.sciencekiddo.com/rainbow-paper-kid-color-science/
Activities/ - Expert visit
Assessment - Rainbow paper (formative)
Day 6- Monday
Essential
Where do colours come from? Flex Day
Question
Skills Attitudes Understandings
Outcomes
- 1-4 Curiosity 1-5.10
This class will be spent reviewing where colours come from and reflecting
on the activity from Friday. We will read You are Light and discuss light
and colours; students will have a deeper understanding of the fact that
Description colours come from white light; they will learn more about this throughout
the week. This lesson will focus on the basics and getting student questions
about this process. The rest of class will be flex time to finish anything
from the week before.
Resources - You Are Light by Aaron Becker
Activities/ - Flex: finish up loose ends from last week, allow time for student
Assessment conferencing and finishing rainbow poems.
Day 7- Tuesday
Essential
How can we make a rainbow using a mirror?
Question
Skills Attitudes Understandings
1-2 Reflect and 1-4 Curiosity,
Outcomes
Interpret: Describe inventiveness, 1-5.10
what was observed confidence
Description At the beginning of class, students will have the opportunity to look at and
experiment with mirrors to see if they can create a rainbow. They will do
this with the given materials before you give instruction on how to actually
do the experiment. Once students have had a few minutes to manipulate the
materials, bring them together and see if anyone could make a rainbow!
Have a discussion about what they did, how they did it, their thinking, etc.
Send students back to their stations and give each student the opportunity
16
 to actually create a rainbow using mirrors after you demonstrate. Students
will then take to their science notebooks and record what they used, what
they did, and what they observed. This will be used later for students to
refer back to.
This same lesson procedure will happen throughout the week, with
different ways of creating rainbows using light.
- Make a rainbow guide http://onetimethrough.com/how-to-make-rainbows-at-home/
Resources - Materials for making a rainbow with a mirror
Activities/ - Lab notebook (formative/ summative- all notebooks together)
Assessment - Experimentation/ exploration of materials/ problem solving
Day 8- Wednesday
Essential
How can we make a rainbow using a glass and water?
Question
Skills Attitudes Understandings
1-2 Reflect and 1-4 Curiosity,
Outcomes
Interpret: Describe inventiveness, 1-5.10
what was observed confidence
At the beginning of class, students will have the opportunity to look at and
experiment with a glass and water to see if they can create a rainbow. They
will do this with the given materials before you give instruction on how to
actually do the experiment. Once students have had a few minutes to
manipulate the materials, bring them together and see if anyone could
make a rainbow! Have a discussion about what they did, how they did it,
Description their thinking, etc. Send students back to their stations and give each
student the opportunity to actually create a rainbow using mirrors after you
demonstrate. Students will then take to their science notebooks and record
what they used, what they did, and what they observed. This will be used
later for students to refer back to.
This same lesson procedure will happen throughout the week, with
different ways of creating rainbows using light.
- Make a rainbow guide http://onetimethrough.com/how-to-make-rainbows-at-home/
Resources - Materials for making a rainbow with a glass and water
Activities/ - Lab notebook (formative/ summative- all notebooks together)
Assessment - Experimentation/ exploration of materials/ problem solving
Day 9- Thursday
Essential
How can we make a rainbow using a prism?
Question
Skills Attitudes Understandings
1-2 Reflect and 1-4 Curiosity,
Outcomes
Interpret: Describe inventiveness, 1-5.10
what was observed confidence
Description At the beginning of class, students will have the opportunity to look at and
17
 experiment with prisms to see if they can create a rainbow. They will do
this with the given materials before you give instruction on how to actually
do the experiment. Once students have had a few minutes to manipulate the
materials, bring them together and see if anyone could make a rainbow!
Have a discussion about what they did, how they did it, their thinking, etc.
Send students back to their stations and give each student the opportunity
to actually create a rainbow using mirrors after you demonstrate. Students
will then take to their science notebooks and record what they used, what
they did, and what they observed. This will be used later for students to
refer back to.
This same lesson procedure will happen throughout the week, with
different ways of creating rainbows using light.

- Make a rainbow guide http://onetimethrough.com/how-to-make-rainbows-at-home/

Resources - Materials for making a rainbow with a prism

- Lab notebook (formative/ summative- all notebooks together)

- Experimentation/ exploration of materials/ problem solving
Activities/
Assessment

Day 10- Friday

Essential
How can we make a rainbow using a CD?
Question
Skills Attitudes Understandings
1-2 Reflect and 1-4 Curiosity,
Outcomes
Interpret: Describe inventiveness, 1.5-10
what was observed confidence
At the beginning of class, students will have the opportunity to look at and
experiment with CDs to see if they can create a rainbow. They will do this
with the given materials before you give instruction on how to actually do
the experiment. Once students have had a few minutes to manipulate the
materials, bring them together and see if anyone could make a rainbow!
Have a discussion about what they did, how they did it, their thinking, etc.
Description Send students back to their stations and give each student the opportunity
to actually create a rainbow using mirrors after you demonstrate. Students
will then take to their science notebooks and record what they used, what
they did, and what they observed. This will be used later for students to
refer back to.
This same lesson procedure will happen throughout the week, with
different ways of creating rainbows using light.
Resources - Make a rainbow guide http://onetimethrough.com/how-to-make-rainbows-at-home/

18
 - Materials for making a rainbow with a CD
Activities/ - Lab notebook (formative/ summative- all notebooks together)
Assessment - Experimentation/ exploration of materials/ problem solving
Day 11- Monday
Essential
Flex Day- What are students wondering about?
Question
Skills Attitudes Understandings
Outcomes 1-4 curiosity,
- -
appreciation,
This is one of the last lessons in our unit, but it will be used as a flex day.
This is extremely important in inquiry units because you need to remain
student-centred and have space to focus on what they are wondering,
Description doing, etc. Let students guide where this lesson goes and find out what they
are still wondering about. You can also spend this time expanding on
anything you noticed from the week before. This lesson is purposefully not
slated in stone, in an inquiry unit you MUST have room to move.
- No specific resources today; use this day to respond to student wonders
Resources and let them guide the lesson today. What did you notice last week?
What are students still itching to find out? Etc. Be flexible!
- Flex: finish up loose ends from last week, allow time for student
Activities/
conferencing and finishing any lab notebooks from last week/ catch up
Assessment
students who were absent for any of the experiments
Day 12- Tuesday
Essential
Recap… Rainbow Review!
Question
Skills Attitudes Understandings
1-2 Reflect and
Interpret: identify
Outcomes 1-4 curiosity,
questions being asked 1-5.1, 1-5.10
confidence
and identify what was
learned
This class will be spent doing a quick review about what we know/ do not
know about rainbows and light. This will be in preparation for tomorrow
where students will enter into guided inquiry to create a rainbow! Have
students share some of their lab notebooks from last week; discuss what
Description
worked, what didn’t work, and why.
Ensure students have a solid grasp of rainbows- where do they come from?
What are they made of? Etc. Students should be able to answer the
questions!
- Lab notebooks from last week
Resources
- Review of rainbows; use books, pictures, etc.
19
 Activities/ - Sharing notebooks; identifying problems, solving them, creating plans
Assessment for creating a rainbow! (formative)
Day 13- Wednesday
Essential
How will you make a rainbow using light and materials?
Question
Skills Attitudes Understandings
1-2 Explore and
investigate: manipulate
materials and make
observations that are
relevant to questions 1-4 Curiosity,
Outcomes
asked; recognize and inventiveness, 1-5.10
describe steps confidence
followed
1-2 Reflect and
Interpret: describe
what was observed
This will be our last class of the mini unit; students will be given a wide
variety of materials to choose from to create a rainbow using light! Some
materials will be familiar, some will be new- some will work, and some
will not. Ensure students have many different light sources to choose from
as well. Students will spend the entire class exploring and trying to find a
way to create a rainbow on their own. Let them find a “solution” and
Description
explore the materials after the guided practice we had last week.
Students will use their science notebooks to record what they have done
and draw a picture of their experiment. Students will also use SeeSaw to
record their learning; after they have created a rainbow, they will submit a
SeeSaw of them demonstrating and describing the steps they took and the
materials they used. Students will be familiar with SeeSaw already.
- MANY MANY MANY materials to create a rainbow (some that work,
some that don’t)
Resources
- Ipads for SeeSaw
- Science notebooks
Activities/ - INQUIRY DAY!!!! Create a rainbow (summative)
Assessment - Science notebook (formative/summative- all notebooks together)

20
21