Your student begins by filling a clear glass three-quarters full of water, placing a pencil or straw inside, and stepping back to observe how it appears to bend at the waterline. From there, the experiment shifts to shining a flashlight beam at the water surface and recording how the light changes direction, then repeating the process with a glass block or empty cup to test refraction through glass. Two separate observation rows ask your student to document what they saw and how the light changed direction in each medium, making this light refraction with water and glass lab sheet a strong fit for grades 4 through 6 studying physical science or light properties.

The sheet walks through the full scientific method, from writing a hypothesis to sketching diagram observations in two labeled boxes and answering four analysis questions that push past simple recall. Question four asks students to name two real-life examples of refraction, which makes a good discussion prompt for your end-of-lesson debrief. Add this to a unit study on waves and optics, or use it as a standalone hands-on learning session before introducing lenses or the electromagnetic spectrum.