Test on Tuesday, December 9
Sound – Study Guide
Unit vocabulary
- Sound: A form of energy you can hear.
- Vibrations: Back and forth movements which cause sound
- Volume: The loudness or softness of a sound
- Pitch: How high or low a sound is
1. How can sound be used in science? Objects can be identified by their sound.
2. How does sound travel? In waves
3. What materials can the vibrations that cause sound travel through? Solids, liquids, and gases.
4. Sounds cannot travel through what material? Empty space where there are no particles of matter
to vibrate (such as in outer space)
5. Which would be a high pitched sound: a grumble, a groan, or a squeal? A squeal
6. How does the force used to create the vibrations affect the volume? The more force used, the
louder the volume. (For example, if you hit a desk hard, you will produce a louder sound than if
you tap the desk lightly.)
7. How does distance affect volume? The closer the source of the vibrations, the louder the volume
of the sound will be.
8. How does tightening a string or wire affect the pitch? The tighter the stretch of the string, the
higher the pitch
9. How does the thickness of the material affect pitch? Thinner strings vibrate faster than thicker
ones, and therefore have a higher pitch.
10. How does the length of the material affect pitch? Shorter materials vibrate faster than longer
ones; the faster a string, wire, or air vibrates, the higher the pitch of the sound. Therefore, the
shorter the material, the higher the pitch.
(truck horn)
(bird song)
(drum hit)
11. Arrange the sounds above from highest pitch to the lowest pitch: bird song, truck horn, drum hit