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UV Beads, Change to Purple NGSS

SKU #UV-PUR
Availability: In Stock
Qty.
Turn purple in ultraviolet light from the Sun or other UV sources.
2 oz. pkg. [~240 beads per pkg.]

Description

uv chart

Watch white beads change to purple when taken outside the building! When returned they turn back to white. What causes the change? Humidity? Temperature? Fresh air? Birds flying overhead? The beads contain pigments which react with ultraviolet light from the sun, even on a cloudy day. They also change with most classroom UV light sources. Students can make their own UV light detecting bracelet by stringing the beads on a pipe stem or on a strip of rawhide. Great for teaching UV awareness! Use the beads to test the UV blocking effectiveness of sunblock, sunglasses, windows, etc. Lesson activities are included. The ultraviolet beads will cycle back and forth (to purple and back again) over 50,000 times! Approximately 250 beads per package.

All of our UV beads are the same size. Approximate bead dimensions:
diameter 8.5 mm (5/16") - center hole 3.6 mm (9/64")

blog button Read more on our Blog - Chemistry of Ultraviolet Detecting Beads with Video

blog button Read more on our Blog - UV Radiation Activity

Choking Hazard

Video


Lesson Ideas

Download the pdf of our lesson!

We're delighted that the Stanford SOLAR (Solar On-Line Activity Resource) Center, in conjunction with NASA and the Learning Technologies Channel, have incorporated our UV Detecting Beads in their UV light lesson plans. If you're interested in lessons that really GLOW with hands-on activities, you'll want to take a look at these free resources:

42-page Lesson Plan for grades 2-4.

34-page Lesson Plan for grades 5-8.

22-page Lesson Plan for grades 9-12.

Learn more about what makes our UV Light Detecting Beads change colors here.

Download the MSDS of this product.
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Reviews

6 reviews
UV beads are great for inquiry
Review star icon Review star icon Review star icon Review star icon Review star icon Aug 1, 2020
I have used these beads for years with my 7th graders. I tell them to find out something about UV light, and many students get quite creative. I prefer the purple beads because they seem to change more quickly that some of the other colors.
Mary Ann

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1   0

Biotech
Review star icon Review star icon Review star icon Review star icon Review star icon Oct 10, 2015
These beads work great to test the efficiency of UV protection of different sunscreens. Great product !
Mary

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1   0

Shipping costs Too High
Review star icon Review star icon Review star icon Review star icon Review star icon Oct 25, 2012
Your product is wonderful, your service is wonderful. But, the shipping cost was the same as the cost of the product. The Shipping costs are way too high for a bag of beads.
Nancy

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2   0

UV beads
Review star icon Review star icon Review star icon Review star icon Review star icon May 22, 2012
This is the second year we will be using UV beads of all colors for students to make bracelets at an environmental field day. They enable students to see the effect of sunlight on changing the color of the beads. They can also be used to see how well sunscreen or sunglasses filter UV rays. And students love them!
Judy Famellette

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1   0

PreService Beads
Review star icon Review star icon Review star icon Review star icon Review star icon May 16, 2012
In higher education teacher preparation, these beads provide a great deal of conversation about content (the science of the beads) and instruction (what and how can I teach with the beads?) The BeadBlog does a great job of providing background information. Having the college students manipulate the beads as they search for science connections and lesson development allows the them to engage in the processes of inquiry, which they also are learning to teach.
Maria

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1   0

I order these every year!
Review star icon Review star icon Review star icon Review star icon Review star icon May 16, 2012
My students make a bracelet with the beads. I tell them to wear them and when they come back the next day, tell me what makes them unusual. It's a great way to create curiosity about UV light.
Tamyra Ayles

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NGSS

This product will support your students' understanding of the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS)*, as shown in the table below.

Elementary Middle School High School

1-PS4-2

Students can conduct investigations showing evidence of illumination from an external source such as the Sun.

1-PS4-4
Electromagnetic Radiation

Objects can be seen only when light is available to illuminate them.

MS-PS4-1

Students can conduct investigations showing evidence that the amplitude of a wave is related to the energy in the wave.

MS-PS4-2

Students can use this tool to develop and use a model to describe how waves are reflected, absorbed, or transmitted through various materials.

HS-PS4-5

Students can use UV Beads to conduct investigations on how technological devices use the principles of wave behavior and wave interactions with matter to transmit and capture energy.

HS-PS4-3

Students can use the UV Beads to evaluate the claims, evidence, and reasoning behind the idea that electromagnetic radiation can be described by a wave model.

HS-PS4-4

Students can explore the idea that different frequencies of light have different energies, and the damage to living tissue from electromagnetic radiation depends on the energy of the radiation.

Suggested Science Idea(s)

1-PS4-2

UV light detectors can be made with these beads. Worn as a bracelet or zip pull, the beads will help students develop awareness of where and when UV light is present.

PS4.B

Objects can be seen only when light is available to illuminate them.

MS-PS4-1

Students can conduct investigations outside with the Outside Detector and make correlations to the Electromagnetic Spectrum and the amplitude of a wave is related to the energy in a wave.

MS-PS4-2

Students can use the beads to test different materials to see if the UV waves are being reflected, absorbed, or transmitted through various materials. Colored beads indicate that waves are transmitted.

HS-PS4-5

Students can use these UV Beads in experiments to support mathematical representations of UV light versus white light.

 

* NGSS is a registered trademark of Achieve. Neither Achieve nor the lead states and partners that developed the Next Generation Science Standards were involved in the production of, and do not endorse, this product.

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