Science
SCI.IV.4.2
Grade: 3
Strand:
Using Scientific Knowledge in Physical Science
- Waves and Vibrations
Standard:
All students will describe sounds and sound waves
Benchmark:
Explain how sounds are made.
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
Vibrations:
Sounds from common sources:
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•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
fast
slow
large
small.
musical instruments
radio
television
animal sounds
thunder
human voices
Knowledge and Skills
Resources
Coloma Resources:
Students discover and explain that sound is caused by
vibrating objects or substances.
Discover the Wonder – Grade 3
Module E, pages 5-7
For example:
• Tapping a pencil on a desk top
• Feeling vocal cords while speaking
• Striking a ruler held over the edge of a desktop
• Tapping a tuning fork and putting it in a pan of water
Other Resources:
Gibson, Gary. Hearing Sounds. Copper Beach, 1995.
Hewitt, Sally. Hearing Sounds. Children’s Press,
1999.
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
4.4.2
Sounds of Science from COSI Toledo (a science
museum)
Instruction
Benchmark Question: How are sounds made?
Focus Question: What causes sound?
Teacher will instruct students to place their hand on
their throat and make sounds. Class will discuss
what they hear and feel focusing on vibration.
Students will use common instruments to observe
sound vibrations.
• Tambourine
• Guitar
• Drum
• Kazoo
• Rattles
Assessment
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.
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.
Presentations must include an explanation for:
How is sound made?
What is making the sound?
Is it a fast or slow vibration? Why?
Is it a big or small vibration? Why?
Scoring Rubric
Using a ruler, the students will hold the ruler over the
edge of the desk. Tap it lightly. Listen and observe.
Lengthen or shorten the amount of ruler hanging over the
desk. Tap it lightly again. Listen and observe. What are
the differences and the similarities in the sounds?
Students should be able to observe the relationship
between the length of the ruler, the pitch of the sound
and the speed of the vibration. Repeat this activity
several times with varying lengths.
Criteria
Apprentice
Basic
Meets
Exceeds
Effectiveness
of
construction
Produce a musical
sound without
constructing an
instrument
Construct an
instrument that
produces a
sound
Construct an
instrument that
is capable of 2
different pitches
Construct an
instrument that
is capable 3 or
more pitches
Accuracy of
explanation
Attempt to explain
with
misconceptions
Explain how the
instrument
works using the
concept of pitch
or loudness
Explain how
instrument
works using the
concepts of
pitch and
loudness
Explain how
instrument
works using
the concepts of
pitch and
loudness plus
explains
sounds are
produced
through
vibrations.
Effectiveness
of
performance
Attempt a tune
Attempt a tune
Perform a
recognizable
tune
Performs a
recognizable
tune with
movement
Vibration
explanation
Identify where
sound is coming
from, but may not
include
“vibration”.
Misconception
between types of
vibration and
sound.
Identify where
sound is coming
from including
the word
“vibration”.
Student may
have
misconception
between types of
vibration and
sounds
Identify where
sound is coming
from including
the word
“vibration”.
Explain the
connection
between big or
small-fast or
slow vibration.
(one aspect of
the explanation
may be incorrect
or missing)
Identify where
sound is
coming from
including the
word
“vibration”.
Explain the
connection
between big or
small-fast or
slow vibration.
(one aspect of
the explanation
may be
incorrect or
missing) and
offers how the
sound the
instrument
makes can be
varied
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.