Sweet Vibrations

With a laser trombone and a Polar Bear song, this show gets young toes tapping and brains drumming about the science of sound.

Age: Primary: Yrs K-2
Program Length: 30-40 minutes
Audience: Up to 2 classes per show (approx 60 students)

Program overview

Students will:

  • Explore how big objects make low sounds and small objects make high sounds
  • See how lots of energy makes loud sounds, and little energy makes soft sounds
  • Explore sound as a wave
  • Learn how sound needs matter to travel through
  • Explore how to make sound in different ways: hitting things, rubbing things, blowing things
  • Bring sounds together to make music – telling stories, singing songs
  • Develop their scientific skills of Enquiry, Prediction, Observation, Explanation.

Location requirements

  • Stage requirements: 3m x 3m

Curriculum links

Formal ACS substrands

  • Physical sciences

Links with Overarching Ideas

  • Scale and measurement – introduction to concepts of higher/lower and louder/softer
  • Pattern order and organisation – different sounds can be made by vibrations, whistles, rubbing, plucking and hitting
  • Matter and energy – some materials can make sound, sound travels as a wave.

Australian Curriculum Links

  • Light and sound are produced by a range of sources and can be sensed (ACSSU020)
  • Objects are made of materials that have observable properties (ACSSU003)
  • Everyday materials can be physically changed in a variety of ways (ACSSU018)
  • Science involves asking questions about, and describing changes in, objects and events (ACSHE021)
  • Natural and processed materials have a range of physical properties; These properties can influence their use (ACSSU074)
  • Science involves making predictions and describing patterns and relationships (ACSHE061)

NSW Curriculum Links

STE-1VA, ST1-1VA, Ste-4WS, ST1-4WS, STe-5WT,STe-6NE, ST1-7PW, STe-9ME, ST1-12MW,ST1-13MW, STe-10ME

Extensions

There are lots of musical things you can do at home, in the classroom or at the Newcastle Museum!

In class and at home

Sweet Vibrations at Newcastle Museum

Newcastle Museum is full of musical things and happenings! Some of them include:

  • The massive Merewether Organ built in the 1800s on permanent display.
  • A WWI bugle used at Gallipoli and throughout the Western Front by an ANZAC soldier.
  • Check out the history of Silverchair, The Screaming Jets and other famous Newcastle musicians.

Did you know?

  • The speed of sound is 340 metres per second? After you see lightening – for every second that passes before hearing the thunder, means the lightening happened 340m further away. As a rough rule – it’s 1 kilometre for every three seconds!
  • There is no sound in space!
  • Whales in the ocean 'sing' to each other, and the sound can travel more than 1000 kms!