Sound Effects Activity

Goal: To teach children about sound waves though the use of common materials as sound effects.

Materials Needed

Quantity: multiply by number of groups of five children in the class. One set can also be used, but it will need to be shared for the skit portion of the class, which is only favorable if the skits can be recorded.

ü Blocks of wood, in pairs

ü Cups for horse hooves

ü Glass drink bottle

ü Cork

ü Vinegar

ü Two Pringles cans

ü One pint of loose gravel

ü Handful of pennies

ü One hackeysack

ü Two plastic eggs

ü Dry rice

ü Metal frying pan

ü Metal spatula or pancake flipper

ü Clipboard

Ø Skit handouts for each group

Ø Sound wave handouts for each student

Ø Take-home activity handouts for each student

Ø Take-home activity handouts for each student’s parents

Ø Chalk and chalkboard

If available:

o Computer with sound wave generating software and microphone

o Other sound recording equipment

Instructions for Teacher

Part One: Radio Style Sound Effects (10-15 minutes)

Have prepared for the children the given set of homemade sound effect equipment. As background, explain briefly that before television, radio stations would broadcast sound-only plays and shows for entertainment, ranging from westerns and science fiction to detective stories and soap operas. These shows often had to recreate sounds to make the stories more believable, but could not act out all the sounds on a real-life scale in the sound studio. Introduce the children as a group to the sound effects. Present each one, make the sound with the object, and ask for ideas as to what real-life sound the effect could be used to imitate. No specific answer is truly correct, but the suggested relationships are as follows, and are used in the skits later on.

Wood blocks: gunshot, door knock

Cups: horse hooves (knock on a table, cup down)

Glass bottle with cork and vinegar: monkey squealing, mice, birds (dip cork in vinegar and rub on bottle), bottle opening or other “pop” (pull out cork)

Egg shakers filled with rice: rattlesnake, rainforest (shake both together)

Pringles can filled with gravel: crash, rain (turn can slowly)

Pringles can filled with pennies and sack: crash (give one solid shake lengthwise)

Pan and spatula: sword unsheathing (pull spatula across the back of the pan quickly), swordfight (clang spatula on pan)

Clipboard: gunshot (hold one end against a table, pull the other end up and let go, so it claps on the table surface)

Other effects: body fall (let elbows, then arms fall against a desk), vocals (make animal noises)

Explain to the children how these effects are made, what is inside them, and how they could make effects themselves.

Part Two: Skits (20-30 minutes)

Break the children up into groups of about five children each. It is favorable to make single-sex groups, if possible, as it has been shown that storyline interest varies greatly between the sexes. If more time is allocated to this part of the activity, it may be helpful to do one mixed-sex group session and one same-sex group session. Give each group a script for one of the skits. The boys usually favor the western, and the girls tend to prefer the rainforest scene. Ask each group to read their skit and figure out how to make the necessary sounds using the effects provided in-class. If time allows, each group could present their skit by acting it out in front of the class. Ideally, if there is audio recording equipment available, the groups could record their skits to hear how the sound effects work with the story to sound like it is really happening.

Part Three: Explaining Sound Waves (10 minutes)

When the group work is done, gather the children again to present the scientific phenomena. Discuss how sound moves through the air like ripples move through a pond. Use pictures on the handout, drawings on a blackboard, or computer software to show examples of sound waves. Explain the effects of amplitude, the height of the wave, on the volume; that is, a loud sound makes a tall wave. Also explain pitch, or wavelength, and how a low sound makes a long, drawn out wave, which a high, squeaky sound looks narrow and squiggly. Ask the children how they think some of the sound effects used in class look as waves, and demonstrate if possible using software or a blackboard approximation. If a computer with a microphone is available, children could be given the chance to see their voices as waves.

Part Four: Take-Home Activity

Give the children hand-outs showing an example of a sound wave. Ask the children what that wave might sound like. Ask the children to make a sound effect at home that would make a wave similar to the one they received. The children could bring in their effects at a later date and compare.