SOUNDS GOOD TO ME
Grades K-2

In these activities, students identify and classify sources of sounds. The children will listen to a variety of sounds, and use them as a basis for data collection, sorting, and graphing.

Science is Elementary #105: Let's Explore Sound
Head to Toe #111: Sounds

The students will:

• Identify a variety of sounds.
• Sort the sources of sounds into two categories: "Sounds I Hear in My Neighborhood" and "Sounds I Do Not Hear in My Neighborhood."
• Chart their data pictorially and on a bar graph.

For each child:

• "Sound Pictures" sheet
• "Sounds I Hear" activity sheet
• "Number of Sounds I Hear" activity sheet
• crayons (two different colors)
• glue
• scissors

CUE the tape Sounds to the beginning.
Tell the students they are going to hear several sounds.
BEGIN the segment. PAUSE the tape after the boy plays each sound on his tape recorder. Have students call out the source of that sound. STOP the tape after about 2:30 minutes, right after the boy says, "Very funny."
Discuss the students' reactions to the activity. Were they able to identify the source of each sound? Where have they heard the sounds before? Which sounds do they hear in their neighborhood?
Explain that we receive information in many ways, and that hearing is one of them. Tell the students that they are going to remember sounds that they have heard, and make those sounds when they see the various sources.

The first time the students view the video segment (sound off), they will focus on the objects themselves, and make the corresponding sounds.

CUE Science is Elementary: Let's Explore Sound to about 2:30 minutes into the program, when the girl is reading on her bed.
Turn off the sound when she says, "I wonder where the sound is coming from?" Show the rest of the segment with the sound off. Have the children make the sounds themselves as the objects are shown on the video. FREEZE frame as each object is shown, to give the children sufficient time to create an appropriate sound. STOP the video about 2 minutes later after the same girl plays the drum.
Discuss the various objects that made the sounds. Ask the children how they knew what sound to make. When and where have the children heard the sounds before-at home, school, on a trip, on TV, etc.
REWIND the tape and show the same segment of the girl. The second time through the video segment (sound on), the children will listen to the sounds and determine whether they have heard that sound in their neighborhood or outside of their neighborhood.
Pass out the "Sounds I Hear" and the "Sound Pictures" sheets, along with scissors and glue. Repeat the video segment with the sound on. Pause the video after each sound. Have the children record each sound source on their "Sounds I Hear" activity sheet, by cutting out and gluing each picture, either in the first column "Sounds I Hear in My Neighborhood." or the second column, "Sounds I Do Not Hear in My Neighborhood."

Have the children add up the total number of objects in each category and share their results with the class. Compare the data and discuss the variations. Why do some children hear certain sounds in their neighborhood, while others do not?
Next, have the children transfer their data onto the "Number of Sounds I Hear" activity sheet. They will create a bar graph of their results, coloring in squares to represent the objects.

For homework, ask the students and their families to listen for 5 minutes to sounds in or around their homes. Have the children make a list of all the sounds they hear on the "Neighborhood Sounds" activity sheet. Share the lists at school.

1. Show the segment in Science is Elementary: Let's Explore Sound, in which the girl makes sounds with different parts of her body (about 12:30 minutes into the program, until the end-about 1 minute total viewing time). Have the children take turns creating sounds with parts of their body. Tally how many different sounds the students can make with different parts of their bodies.
2. For homework, the students can experience television with the sound off, and record their results on the "Sound-Or Rather, No Sound" activity sheet. How much of the story can they determine without the sound? How did they feel while watching?
3. There are many software packages which can record and play sound. For example, using KidWorks2, HyperStudio, or Linkway, students can record and edit their own voices, music, and sounds on the computer.


INTERNET EXTENSIONS

After completing "Sounds I Hear in My Neighborhood" activities, your class may have more questions about sound. The San Francisco Exploratorium is a good place to start looking for answers to questions. Log into the Exploratorium's Home Page. Choose "Ask Us." Submit a question regarding sound.
Exploratorium
http://www.exploratorium.edu/
The "Webrarians" (Global SchoolNet) are also very skilled in helping people locate resources. Webrarians are kids K-12 and teachers who answer email questions.
Global SchoolNet - "Webrarians" http://www.gsn.org/gsn/gsn/webrarian.html

Master Teachers: Meg Hudson, Sarah L. Hudson and Linda Barnett