What is Sound?

1. What is Sound? Rachel Kohl & Jenifer Chandler

2. “Feel the Vibes” • What you will need: • A ruler • Space at your table • Pencil & Paper (to record your observations)

3. What to Do… • Hold your ruler on the desk with part of it hanging off the edge. • Flick the edge that’s hanging off. • Record your observations. • Repeat the activity, but experiment with the different lengths and sounds of the ruler.

4. Sources of sound • Vibrations • Vibrations that cause sounds are called sound waves. • Travel through air and materials • Can be high, low, loud, or soft

5. Pitch • How high or low a sound is • Size compared to pitch of sound • Child’s voice compared to adult’s • Thin guitar strings compared to thick guitar strings

6. Intensity • Measure of how low or soft a sound is • Compares with amount of energy

7. Straw Reed Instruments • What you need: • A straw • Single hole punch • Scissors

8. Straw Reed Instruments • Cut the tip of a straw into a point. • Then cut small holes in the front of the straw (about 4-6 holes) • Try to play your reed instrument and listen for the way the pitch changes as you cover up the holes.

9. Evaluation Write down your observations of how your straw reed instrument connects to the ruler activity.