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Science lesson plan · 1st grade (Year 2 in England) · 30 minutes

Sound can make things vibrate

Light, sound and waves

CCSS NGSS.1-PS4-1England: KS2 Y4 Sound

Objective and success criteria

Students will: Sound can make things vibrate.

  • I can answer questions on today's skill on my own, without help.
  • I can explain each step and say why it works.
  • I can check my answer and spot a mistake.

Before and after

Needs first: Find the part that vibrates to make the sound

Leads to: the next skill in this area.

Materials: Slinky or rope, Mirrors and torches, Mini whiteboards, A diagram or short video clip of the idea, Printed student sheet (below).

Warm-up · 4 min

  • Quick retrieval from earlier learning (Find the part that vibrates to make the sound). Students answer on mini whiteboards.
  • Show answers together and note who needs support in the main task.
  1. What vibrates to make the sound of a loudspeaker? (the cone at the front / the strings / the air inside the tube / the metal triangle) → the cone at the frontPrompt: Which part moves back and forth when the sound is made?
  2. Put your fingers gently on your throat and hum. What do you feel? (nothing at all / a buzzing vibration / your heart stopping / something very cold) → a buzzing vibrationPrompt: Sounds are made by things moving back and forth.
  3. True or false? All sounds are made by something vibrating. (True / False) → TruePrompt: What is happening to the object when a sound is made?

Hook · 3 min

  • Ask the class to make a wave with a rope or slinky and describe what moves and what doesn't.
  • Share the objective: Sound can make things vibrate. Read the success criteria together.

I do: model it · 7 min

  • Work through the example out loud, saying why you do each step, not just what you do.
  • Example: A tuning fork is struck and then dipped into a bowl of water. What do you see?
  • Step 1: The vibrating fork shakes the water, showing that sound is vibration.
  • Step 2: So the answer is: The water splashes and ripples.
  • Answer: The water splashes and ripples.
  • Pause after each step and ask a student to say what comes next.

We do: guided practice · 6 min

  • Do these together. Students try each step on whiteboards before you reveal it.
  • Use the hints as prompts rather than giving the answer.
  1. A tuning fork is struck and then dipped into a bowl of water. What do you see? (Nothing happens. / The water turns blue. / The water freezes. / The water splashes and ripples.) → The water splashes and ripples.Prompt: The fork is vibrating even if you cannot see it.
  2. True or false? Sound is a kind of light. (True / False) → FalsePrompt: How does sound get from one place to another?

You do: independent practice · 7 min

  • Students work on the student sheet. Circulate and check the first two answers of every student early.
  • Students who finish: write a question of their own for a partner, with the answer.

The 6 questions are on the student sheet below, with answers in the key.

Exit ticket · 3 min

  • Two questions on their own. Sort answers into got it / nearly / not yet to plan the next lesson.
  1. True or false? A quiet whisper rattles windows more than a loud drum. (True / False) → FalsePrompt: How does sound get from one place to another?
  2. Sound and vibration: which statement is true? (Sound can only travel through air. / Rice on a drum jumps because of the light in the room. / A string telephone works best with the string loose and floppy. / Your eardrum vibrates when sound reaches it.) → Your eardrum vibrates when sound reaches it.Prompt: Sound is a shaking that passes from thing to thing.

Watch out for

  • Everyday meanings of words getting in the way of the science meaning: define key words explicitly.
  • Remembering facts without the reason: ask "why?" and "what is the evidence?"

Support and stretch

Support

  • Review first: Find the part that vibrates to make the sound.
  • Use concrete materials: slinky or rope.
  • Give the first step of each question, or a partly worked example to finish.
  • Pair with a confident partner for the guided practice.

Stretch

  • Explain a common mistake in writing and how to fix it.
  • Write a word problem that uses today's skill, then solve a partner's.

Homework and more practice

Free online practice with hints and printable worksheets for this skill: eurekami.com/science/grade-1.

Free lesson plan from eurekami.com/lesson-plan-builder

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Sound can make things vibrate

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  1. Question 1

    When a very loud lorry (truck) goes past, the windows rattle. Why?

    • A. The lorry touches the windows.
    • B. The windows are scared.
    • C. The loud sound makes the glass vibrate.
    • D. The windows are making the noise first.

  2. Question 2

    Sound and vibration: which statement is true?

    • A. Rice on a drum jumps because of the light in the room.
    • B. Sound can only travel through air.
    • C. A string telephone works best with the string loose and floppy.
    • D. You can feel loud music through the floor.

  3. Question 3

    True or false? Sound is a kind of light.

    • A. True
    • B. False

  4. Question 4

    You stretch cling film over a bowl and put salt on it. How can you make the salt dance without touching the bowl?

    • A. Whisper far away.
    • B. Cool the bowl in the fridge.
    • C. Turn off the lights.
    • D. Make a loud sound close to it.

  5. Question 5

    True or false? Sound travels from its source as vibrations.

    • A. True
    • B. False

  6. Question 6

    True or false? Loud sounds can make objects nearby vibrate.

    • A. True
    • B. False

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Answer key: Sound can make things vibrate

  1. 1. C. The loud sound makes the glass vibrate.

  2. 2. D. You can feel loud music through the floor.

  3. 3. B. False

  4. 4. D. Make a loud sound close to it.

  5. 5. A. True

  6. 6. A. True