Activity 1.1 - Introduction to sound

• Developing a concept map to realize the richness of sound as well in terms of physics as well in terms of everyday life
• Triggering student’s’ interest and curiosity about sound

Let students shut their eyes and be still and silent for 3 minutes. Tell them to concentrate on what they hear. Have students open their eyes and list the sounds they heard. Then, together with the students, develop a concept map to ascertain student’s prior knowledge and to gain information regarding misconceptions students may have in relation to the topic of sound.

While doing this allow students to collectively give their opinions on what they know about sound, each time writing up the ideas onto the concept map. Try to group similar terms or ideas together so that by the end of the class discussion you have a concept map with a structure, which will relate to the series of lessons that you will teach on this topic. Allow students, as a group, to tell you all they know about sound. There may be some idea’s missing from your concept map that you intend to cover in the lessons, or ideas that you feel students may have just forgotten about. Ask probing and guiding questions to get students to think about and come up with the ideas that relate to content but are missing in the concept map.

• What do you know about sound?
• What makes a sound loud/soft?
• What was the loudest sound ever heard?
• What makes a sound pleasant/unpleasant?
• What makes a sound high/low?
• How do you think sound travels?
• How do we hear sounds?
• How do blind people use sounds “to see”?
• How do music and noise differ?
• How do musical instruments make their sounds?