Science
SCI.IV.4.1
Grade: 3
Strand:
Using Scientific Knowledge in Physical Science
- Waves and Vibrations
Standard:
All students will describe sounds and sound waves
Benchmark:
Describe sounds in terms of their properties.
Constructing and Reflecting:
SCI.I.1.1 SCI.I.1.2 SCI.I.1.5 SCI.II.1.1 SCI.II.1.2 -
Generate reasonable questions about the world based on observation.
Develop solutions to problems through reasoning, observation, and investigation.
Develop strategies and skills for information gathering and problem solving.
Develop an awareness of the need for evidence in making decisions scientifically.
Show how science concepts can be illustrated through creative expression such as language arts and fine
arts.
Vocabulary / Key Concepts
Context
Pitch:
Sound from common sources:
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•
•
•
•
•
•
•
high
low
Loudness:
•
•
loud
soft
musical instruments
radio
television
animal sounds
thunder
human voices.
Knowledge and Skills
Students will analyze and describe sounds in terms
of their properties – pitch (high, low) and loudness
(loud, soft).
Resources
Coloma Resources:
Discover the Wonder - Grade 3
Module E – Chapter 1, pages 10-13
Other Resources:
Nankivell, Sally. Science Experiments With
Sound. Watts, 2000.
Videoconferences Available
For more information, see
www.remc11.k12.mi.us/dl or call Janine Lim
471-7725x101 or email jlim@remc11.k12.mi.us
4.4.1
Sounds of Science from COSI Toledo (a
science museum)
Instruction
Benchmark Question: What are the properties of
sound?
Focus Question: What are high and low pitch
sounds?
Students will:
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•
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•
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Listen to, compare and describe the sounds
from 3 or 4 different sized bells.
Make straw whistles of varying lengths MEAP
Investigation 1998 (link), and compare pitch
to varying lengths.
Create an instrument using glass bottles filled
to varied heights of water, arrange them by
pitch from high to low and try to play a song.
Discuss which items produce high and low
pitch.
Make high and low pitched sounds with their
voices.
Assessment
Coloma Assessment:
Discover the Wonder – Grade 3
Module E, page 23
Other Assessment:
Students in groups will be part of a band.
They will each construct an instrument. They
will play a recognizable tune to an invited
audience. Each student will identify their
instrument and explain what it can do,
demonstrating the volume and pitch. In the
explanation, they will explain how different
pitches can be made. After each student has
described their instrument, the group will play
their song.
* It is recommend that the assessment for
this Benchmark and Benchmark IV. 4. E. 2. be
used for a culminating assessment for a
sound unit.
(Give students rubric before activity.)
Scoring Rubric
Criteria
Apprentice
Basic
Meets
Exceeds
Effectiveness
of construction
Constructs an
instrument
that does not
produce a
sound.
Constructs an
instrument
that produces
a sound with
one pitch.
Constructs an
instrument
that produces
a sound with
two different
pitches.
Constructs
an
instrument
that
produces a
sound with
three or
more
different
pitches.
Accuracy of
explanation
Explains how
the
instrument
works without
using the
concepts of
pitch and
loudness.
Explains how
the instrument
works using
the concepts
of pitch or
loudness.
Explains how
the instrument
works using
the concepts
of pitch and
loudness.
Explains
how the
instrument
works using
the concepts
of pitch and
loudness
plus explains
that sounds
are
produced
through
vibrations.
Effectiveness
Produces a
of performance noise instead
of a song.
Performs an
unrecognizabl
e song.
Performs a
recognizable
song with
some
mistakes.
Performs a
recognizable
song with no
mistakes.
Teacher Notes:
Describe sounds and sound waves.
During the elementary grades, children should begin to describe and analyze their rich experiences with
sounds. In particular, they should be able to distinguish sounds from the objects that make them. They need to
understand that sounds exist in the air, and that they are separate from the objects that make them.
Elementary students should learn that all sounds originate with some kind of vibrating object or substance.
As middle school students experience sound traveling through different media; they should identify other ways
that matter can affect sound. Many students think of echoes only as sounds that repeat themselves in open
spaces. They do not relate them to the movement of sound waves, nor do they understand that echoes are
produced whenever sound waves bounce back (reflect) off large surfaces.