Unit 1F: Sound and hearing Section 9: Testing sound and distance
Objectives
Children should learn:
that sounds get fainter as they travel away from a source
to measure distances using non-standard (or standard) measures
to make and record their measurements
Activities
Outcomes
Children:
Ask children to think about how far away they can hear sounds eg in the hall, can they hear someone talking at the other end? Can they hear someone talking at the other end of the playground? Take children into a hall (or playground on a still day) and explore with them whether they can hear a quiet sound eg a buzzer at one end from the other. Explore a number of alternative ways of finding out eg moving towards, away from the sound, using different sources of sound, placing the sound source at one end, one side, in the middle of the hall. Agree a way of finding out with the children. Use the method with one source and ask children to measure how far they were from the source. Repeat using a quieter sound source and record measurements.
state that when they are far away they can't hear people talking
measure distance from their position to the sound source using a non-standard measure or a metre stick or tape measure and record their measure
Points to note
This activity, together with the following activity, offers the opportunity of a class investigation. It may be helpful to concentrate on the aspects of investigation highlighted in the learning objectives.
The units in which the distances are measured should enable a suitable chart to be made from the results. Children should be encouraged to use units with their measurements in all their work.
This unit is divided into sections. Each section contains a sequence of
activities with related objectives and outcomes. You can view this unit by
moving through the sections or print/download the whole unit.
