After students have answered the questions, families can choose to do one (or all) of the fun activities below.

Questions

1. What do you think sound waves look like? Draw them on a piece paper.
2. Draw a musical instrument that makes sound waves. Show the waves travelling from the instrument to a human ear.
3. Watch the video about how sound is made.
4. Choose one or more of the experiments below to make your own musical toy or instrument.
5. Reflect on your original drawing of the sound waves. With your new knowledge, what parts of your drawing might change? What would stay the same?

Paper cup telephone

Collect your materials: string, two cups, a sharp object (skewer, needle or sharp utensil) and scissors. To get started:

• cut a long piece of string (around 2 metres)
• take 2 cups, and poke a small hole in the bottom of each cup
• thread the string through each cup. tie knots in each end to prevent the thread from falling out.
• take one end; get your friend to take the other end. One person talks into the cup while the other one listens.

Sound sandwich

Collect your materials: scissors, two bendy straws, two popsticks, one large rubber band and two smaller rubber bands. To get started:

• cut the tops of the straw near the bendy part.
• stretch the rubber band across the popstick.
• sandwich the straw between the popsticks.
• tie them together with the small rubber bands.
• blow air through the popsticks to make a fun noise with your new instrument.

Water xylophone

Collect your materials: bottles or jars (as many as you like), a jug of water, food colouring (optional), a beater (like a spoon, chopstick, etc) and a flat, dry table or surface. To get started:

• line up your bottles
• fill up your bottles so that the water looks like a staircase. The first one can be mostly full, and the last one will be mostly empty
• tap the bottles to hear the notes. Adjust any to higher or lower notes by adjusting the water level
• add some food colouring to the bottles. You can make a rainbow if you like
• try to play a song or a nursery rhyme that you know.