The Sun is a star. It looks much brighter than other stars because it is so much closer. Apparent brightness means how bright a source looks from our position. Real stars also differ in their own light output, called luminosity. A dim-looking star is not automatically the most distant one. Safety: View the screen only. Use a low-power battery torch, never the Sun, a laser or a mains lamp. Stop: Stop after two near–far comparisons. No direct light-source viewing, outdoor observation or precise light-meter claim.

Materials: Paper; Pencil; One low-power battery torch; White paper screen; Ruler 1. Stand a white paper screen on a stable table. Keep room lighting and torch setting unchanged. Adult aims the torch at it from 20 cm, then 40 cm. Learner views the paper, never the torch. 2. Record near and far descriptions of the illuminated patch. Repeat near then far once. Write whether the patch looked brighter, dimmer or no clear difference. These are actual qualitative observations, not calibrated brightness readings. 3. Copy a separate illustrative star table: A—luminosity 1 unit, distance 1 unit, apparent brightness 1 unit; B—luminosity 1, distance 2, brightness 0.25; C—luminosity 4, distance 2, brightness 1. The units and stars are fictional, with no dust between source and observer. 4. Compare A with B to isolate distance. Compare B with C to isolate luminosity. Compare A with C to see that different distances can still give equal apparent brightness. Do not treat the torch as an exact point-source measurement of this table. 5. Write a Sun explanation and a caution: the Sun is far closer than other stars, but brightness alone cannot rank every star’s distance. Done: Finish the torch observation log or declared fallback, three table comparisons and a qualified Sun explanation. Proof: Keep log and comparisons. Note adult positioning help and unclear visual judgements. Stop: Stop after two near–far comparisons. No direct light-source viewing, outdoor observation or precise light-meter claim.