About Angle Master Laser Puzzle
Reflection follows a rule that is easy to state and hard to feel: the angle a beam leaves at matches the angle it arrived at. This puzzle makes the rule something a child discovers by trying, failing, adjusting and eventually predicting - which is a far more durable way to learn it than being told and asked to apply it.
What this game teaches
- How light reflects off a flat mirror
- Rotating a mirror in fixed angular steps
- Predicting a beam's path before firing it
- Working backwards from a target to the required mirror angle
- Persistence with a problem that takes several attempts
How to play
- A torch, one or more mirrors and a target appear on a grid.
- Tap a mirror to rotate it by fifteen degrees.
- Tap the torch to fire the laser and see the path.
- Hit the target to complete the level; ten levels are available.
Before you start
A child should understand that light travels in straight lines and should be comfortable with the idea of an angle. The reflection rule itself is what the puzzle teaches.
For teachers
Ask children to predict the path before firing, and to explain a wrong prediction afterwards. The prediction is the physics; firing without predicting reduces it to trial and error and teaches very little.
For parents
A torch and a small mirror in a dark room does the same thing physically and is more memorable. The game is a good way to practise once the real thing has been seen.
Related games
- Magic Mirror — Class 1-5
- 3D Shapes — Class 3-6
- Map Race — Class 4-8