Ancient people used musical pipes as early as the third millennium BCE. Young scientists explore the workings of musical pipes to better understand the relationship with frequency, length of pipe, and sound waves. They determine the...

What's cooking? A sizzling STEM unit challenges scholars to build a solar cooker that can successfully cook an egg. The unit opens with a study of Earth's rotation, the sun's energy, and shadows. Pupils use a compass and thermometer to...

The sound waves of thunder are made when lightning very quickly heats the air surrounding it, expanding faster than the speed of sound. Learners explore waves through their own movement of string or set waves to constantly oscillate....

Discover whether sound travels in space and other fascinating science facts. Scientists explore energy transfer by longitudinal waves and learn about compression, rarefaction, amplitude, and wavelength while watching an animated video....

Explore a variety of science concepts in an interactive textbook created for middle school scholars. A lengthy table of contents takes readers to pages comprised of a subject overview, outline, and summary. Follow links further to find...

How loud was that? Individuals build wheels displaying different sounds. Then, learners use the wheels to find the number of decibels the sound creates and how long they could withstand the sound before potential hearing damage.

Visualize vibrations within the classroom. Pupils see the connection between sound and waves. The learners use a tuning fork in two different ways to demonstrate the waves associated with sound. Scholars see how the sound waves from a...

Catch the fast wave. Using a computer simulation, pupils experiment with amplitude, frequency, damping, and tension of a string to determine which affects the speed of the wave. Learners record the observations to determine their...

Pupils construct and play various musical instruments made from straws and bottles. They investigate how changes in their instruments result in tone changes. Learners change the lengths and amount of water in the instruments and record...

Here comes the sound. After watching a couple videos demonstrating and explaining the Doppler Effect, learners develop their own understanding of the phenomenon. Scholars draw a sound wave and observe how the perception of the wave...

How loud is the class's hearing threshold? Using a sound level meter, the class members observe how the loudness of sound is affected by distance. Learners continue to study decibels by seeing how different sounds compare to each other...

No need for a knife when a fork will do! Groups of pupils first read about the science of sound, and then experiment with tuning forks. Teams gather information about the pitch and length of their forks and compare them to the pitch and...

String together how instruments produce sound. Using pieces of string, learners find ways to create sound. They investigate changes to the string and the effect of adding a cup. Finally, pupils experiment by changing the way to create...

The cycle of energy is important to many different systems on Earth. Scholars investigate the differences between renewable and non-renewable resources and how they relate to global changes using questioning and observation. They...

Dive into the mystery of sound waves!  Scholars brainstorm questions about how sound travels and why different items make different sounds. They then conduct experiments to answer their questions.

How does sound travel through different mediums? Scholars explore this question by creating and observing sound waves as they learn the difference between transverse and longitudinal wave motion. Using their new knowledge, class members...

What's life like aboard an ocean exploration vessel? Junior oceanographers examine the important role of communication in ocean research in lesson two of a five-part series from NOAA. The materials introduce the class to life on board...

What determines which ball rolls the fastest — the weight, the radius, the material, or something else? Scholars select two balls to race down the inclined plane, determining their material and radius. As they race, the simulation graphs...

How can a pan flute sound one note while we hear a chord? The simulation explores sound waves, vibrations, and harmonics at the molecular level. Scholars control the pipe into which air is being blown, the length of the pipe, and which...

If you are at a sports match and the crowd starts two waves that are both headed toward you at the same time, what do you do? The simulation applies the concepts of constructive interference and destructive interference to that very...

Many people know that fiber optics are used in delivering the Internet, but are surprised to learn they are also used in astronomy. Scholars explore light, reflection, and fiber optics through hands-on activities. They discuss methods of...

Ever wonder why a siren sounds different when it's coming toward you than when it's going away from you? It all depends on the motion of the sound waves! The interactive activity demonstrates how the Doppler effect impacts the motion of...

Lead your class on a journey to the planet Jupiter and provide them with fun facts in the process. Learners explore radio waves emitted by Jupiter to further understand how this data helps our daily lives. They conclude by discussing...

Young scientists use Slinkys to better understand waves. After creating and measuring many aspects of waves, they complete a handout and homework questions. The resource also introduces the final project for the chapter, though it does...