Starter quiz
- Which of the following words describes a repeated back and forth movement?
- vacuum
- vibration ✓
- violin
- voltage
- volume
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- Which of the following words is used to describe what all solids, liquids and gases are made of?
- particles ✓
- partitions
- parts
- pinnacles
- popsicles
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- A drum on one side of a room is hit. It makes a sound that travels to the other side of the room. How does the sound travel across the room?
- Air travels from one side of the room to the other.
- Sound particles travel from one side of the room to the other.
- Sound passes between the air particles from one side of the room to the other.
- A pattern of repeating movements travels from one side of the room to the other. ✓
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- What is the name of the process when a wave ‘bounces’ off a surface?
- absorption
- diffraction
- reflection ✓
- refraction
- transmission
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- What name is given to the process when a wave loses its energy after travelling into a material, so that it neither bounces off nor travels all the way through?
- absorption ✓
- diffraction
- reflection
- refraction
- transmission
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- When a sound wave travels through air, it makes the air heat up a little. Which of the following statements explains why this happens?
- The wave uses up air particles.
- The wave creates more air particles.
- The wave increases the random movements of air particles. ✓
- The wave decreases the random movements of air particles.
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Exit quiz
- Which of the following statements are correct?
- When an object absorbs sound, its particles vibrate more. ✓
- Softer materials absorb more energy from sound waves than harder materials. ✓
- When a sound wave enters a solid, it travels through gaps between particles.
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- A person hits a drum in a room. After they stop hitting the drum, they cannot hear the sound any more. Which of the following statements explains why this happens?
- The energy of the sound has been used up.
- The sound wave has been absorbed by walls and other objects. ✓
- The sound can now be heard somewhere else instead.
- The energy of the sound has transferred to the thermal store. ✓
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- A person stands 5 metres away from a wall outside and claps. They hear an echo. When the person hears the echo, how far has the sound wave travelled?
- 0 m
- between 0 m and 5 m
- 5 m
- 10 m ✓
- 20 m
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- Which of the following characteristics of a surface allow it to produce clear echoes?
- flat ✓
- rough
- smooth ✓
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- Which of the following is the correct definition of ‘noise’?
- loud sound
- constant sound
- unwanted sound ✓
- sound that stops and starts
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- In a music recording room, echoes are usually not wanted. Which of the following methods are most effective at reducing echoes in the room?
- wooden floor
- carpet on the floor ✓
- walls covered with soft foam ✓
- walls covered with metal sheets
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Worksheet
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Presentation
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Video
Lesson Details
Key learning points
- Sound reflects from hard surfaces. An echo is when a sound is heard again after reflecting and travelling back.
- Smooth, flat surfaces help to produce echoes. Irregular surfaces reflect sound in many directions, spreading it out.
- The particles of harder materials are held together by stronger forces so sound waves can’t make them vibrate much.
- Soft surfaces absorb a lot of sound because sound waves transfer energy by making the particles in them vibrate.
- Noise (unwanted sound) can be reduced by using soft materials to absorb it or hard materials to reflect it.
Common misconception
Pupils often describe an absorbing surface as trapping a sound and do not correctly describe how the vibrations of air particles are reduced by making particles in a surface vibrate more.
Provide opportunity for pupils to describe how vibrations of air particles are reduced when sound waves make particles in a surface vibrate more.
Keywords
Reflect - to ‘bounce’ off a surface
Echo - when a sound is heard more than once because sound waves have reflected back
Transmit - to pass into and through a material
Absorb - materials that absorb sound reduce the vibrations of the air (as sound is easily transmitted to/through them)
Noise - unwanted sound
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