STEM Lesson Unit: Sound

Title: Recess Bell

Estimated Time: 2-4 Days

Standards:
S1P1. Obtain, evaluate, and communicate information to investigate light and sound.
e. Design a signal that can serve as an emergency alert using light and/or sound to
communicate over a distance.

Science and Engineering Practices Crosscutting Concepts

 Asking Questions and Defining  Patterns

Problems  Cause and Effect Events
 Conducting Explanations and
Designing Solutions
 Engaging in Argument from Evidence

Big Ideas/Enduring Understandings: Vocabulary:

 Recognize there are many kinds of
sound
 Understand that the greater distance
between you and the source of sound,
the weaker (lower volume) the sound
 Sounds are produced by vibrations
 Be familiar and recognize emergency
sounds
Essential Questions:
 How can I create an emergency sound
to alert my peers?
 Vibrations
 Sound
 Emergency sound
Safety Considerations:
 Metal materials should not be cut.
 Be careful not to drop or hit anyone
with the metal materials.
 Do not put any of the small coins,
rocks, bolts, etc in mouth, ears, or
nose.

Materials:  Nuts and bolts

 Clean metal cans  Pennies
 Metal spoons  Metal washers
 Tin pie pans (round and/or square)  Yarn or string
 Small rocks or pebbles  Tape
Project Overview:
Oh no, I lost my recess bell. Students will have to create an emergency sound that will alert
the class the line up from recess. The teacher will use each design and collect data on how
many students line up from recess each day.

Instruction:
Ask (Day 1: 15 mins)
Oh no, I lost my recess bell. Students will have to create an emergency sound that will alert
the class the line up from recess. Students will listen to real life emergency sounds to
determine what they all have in common (high pitch). They will explore with objects of
varying material to determine which ones will make a high pitch.

Imagine (Day 1: 15 mins)

Introduce the constraints of the design plan. Define the criteria for success. Ask each student
to work independently to come up with a possible design solutions. Students should
draw/label their designs.

Criteria:
Your design must make a sound to alert the class to line up from recess.

Constraints:
You only have 1 day during your STEM time for construction!
You may only use the provided materials.
You must work together with a partner to finish the project!

Plan (Day 1: 60 mins)

Pairs will collaborate to come up with final design plan. Students draw final design plan and
make a list of needed supplies. Students will get their supplies, and then begin creating their
emergency sound/tool.

Create/Test (Day 2-4 at the end of recess)

Teacher will use the new recess alert each day to line students up and collect data on how
many students heard the emergency alert to line up quickly/effectively.

Closing/Culminating Activity: Evaluate/ Improve (Day 4: 30 mins)

Students share, evaluate, and improve their design for success. Did it meet the established
criteria? Did their final design match their planned design? How would students improve
their design?
STEM LESSON REFLECTION UNIT: SOUND

This STEM challenge was meaningful and engaging. Students enjoyed creating a tool to alert
their peers. They were eager to test their design and calculate the number of students that
lined up from recess after I used their tool. Some students were discouraged and frustrated if
their tool was not effective. The design process was very loud, and I feel it would have been
better to create outdoors. Then students could test their design from a distance to determine if
it was loud enough.

After listening to real emergency sounds, students had a deeper understanding of what
they needed to create. They tested materials to create a high pitch. They identified hitting or
shaking their design with more energy, the sound would be louder.

This was one of the most engaging challenges my students completed this year. It was
meaningful and addressed a real problem they understood. I would definitely implement this
lesson again in the future.