Sound and electricity
See a sound being made
Can you prove that every sound comes from something vibrating?
Watch first
Feel how a vibration turns into a sound you can hear.
What you need
Tick each one as you find it — 0 of 5 ready.
Stay safe: Keep the rice out of your mouth and ears, and do not hit the tray close to anyone's head.
Plan the fair test
- Change: How the sound is made and how far away it is
- Measure: How much the rice jumps
- Keep the same: Same bowl, same rice, same room, same strength of hit
Objectives this evidences
- Identify how sounds are made, associating some of them with something vibrating
Do it, one step at a time
Step 1 of 5
- Step 1. Sprinkle the rice on the cling film so it sits still.
- Step 2. Hold the tray near the bowl and hit it with the spoon. Watch the rice, do not touch anything.
- Step 3. Try again standing further away, then further still, and note what the rice does each time.
- Step 4. Stretch the elastic band over the tub, pluck it, and watch it blur as it vibrates. Stop it with your finger and listen.
- Step 5. Hold a ruler over the edge of a table, twang it, and watch the end move as the sound comes out.
What should happen
The rice jumps every time a sound is made, and jumps less from further away. Stopping the vibration stops the sound instantly.
Think about: The rice never touched the tray. What travelled across the room to make it move?
Write up your result
A sentence or two is enough to save it.
The lessons behind this practical
Each one opens with the same short film, and the film has a written transcript underneath if reading is easier than watching.
Now the quiz for this topic
Questions come from the lessons behind this practical, so nothing is asked that has not been taught.
Quiz
Sound and electricity quiz
8 questions from the lessons in this stage. No timer, and you can try again as many times as you like.