Get involved in our July Science Challenge - Water bottle xylophone.
Science Challenge - Water Bottle Xylophone
Resources:
- Glasses or glass bottles
- Water
- Wooden stick/pencil
Instructions:
- Fill each glass/bottle with a different amount of water. The first glass/bottle should have the most and the last glass/bottle should have the least.
- Tap each glass/bottle on the side with a wooden stick/pencil and listen to the sound it makes.
- Blow across the tops of the glasses/bottles. Does it make a different sound? Have a go at creating some music with your water bottle xylophones!
Please send a photo on Class Dojo to your teacher. All entries will receive a sticker.
The Science
Tapping/hitting the glass creates a vibration and vibrations make sounds. The size of the vibrations is called the amplitude. The bigger the amplitude, the bigger the sound. The vibrations travel through the water and the distance it travels affects the pitch of the sound. Glasses with more water will have a lower pitch as the vibrations have further to travel. Glasses with less water will have a higher pitch as the vibrations have less distance to travel.
Science of the Month: Sound
Choose one of the following topics to investigate:
- Sound travels fast! Find out the speed of sound.
- Animals make sounds – listen to how animals such as dolphins and whales communicate.
- Make up a sound quiz for your family (e.g., animals, house hold objects etc). Can they guess the sounds correctly.
