Sound insulation | Science | Quizalize & Oak National Academy

Starter quiz

Sound needs to travel through a ______ in order to be heard.
- 'medium' ✓
What vibrates when we hear someone playing a piano?
- the strings inside the piano ✓
- the eardrum ✓
- the air ✓
- the person's fingers
You cannot hear sounds in outer space because ...
- there is no one in space to hear it.
- there is no air in outer space. ✓
- it is too quiet.
You use a sound sensor inside a __________ to measure the volume of sounds accurately.
- data logger ✓
- human ear
- decibel
Volume describes ...
- how you make an object vibrate to make a sound.
- how high or low a sound is.
- how loud or quiet a sound is. ✓
Volume of sound is measured in ...
- 'decibels' ✓

Exit quiz

Some materials do not let sound pass through them easily. That's because they ...
- are not an example of a medium.
- reflect sounds.
- absorb sounds. ✓
Materials that are good at absorbing sounds are called sound ______.
- 'insulators' ✓
How do scientists find out if a material is a good sound insulator?
- They hold the material up to the light.
- They carry out investigations. ✓
- They ask lots of questions.
Sound insulators are often soft materials. This is because ...
- you can hold them better to shout into them.
- they have air spaces so sound cannot pass through them as easily. ✓
- they look better to decorate with.
Who might use their knowledge of sound to design rooms and buildings to reduce the volume of sounds?
- the police
- teachers
- scientists and engineers ✓
Put these materials in order from the best sound insulator to the worst sound insulator.
- 1
  
  ⇔
  
  thick heavy fabric
- 2
  
  ⇔
  
  cardboard
- 3
  
  ⇔
  
  steel

Worksheet

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Lesson Details

Key learning points

Some materials do not allow sound to pass through them easily. They are better at absorbing sound.
Materials that are better at absorbing sound waves are called sound insulators.
Scientists carry out investigations to find out which materials are good sound insulators.
Sound insulators are often soft materials with empty spaces in them, so sound does not pass through them easily.
Scientists and engineers use their knowledge of sound to design rooms and buildings to reduce the volume of sound.

Common misconception

Children may think that sound travels through all solid materials in the same way.

The investigation in this lesson allows children to find out for themselves, first-hand, that sound does not travel through all solid materials in the same way and that some materials are better sound insulators than others.

Keywords

Sound - We hear sound with our ears.
Materials - Materials are the things that objects are made from such as wood, metal or plastic.
Absorb - Absorb means to soak up or take in.
Sound insulator - A sound insulator does not allow sound to pass through it easily.
Volume - The volume of a sound is how loud or quiet the sound is.