Objectives
- Students will explore an animation of a sound wave in air.
- Students will vary the frequency and intensity, or amplitude, of the wave and determine the relationship between the two.
- Students will determine the amplitude and frequency of a sound wave from a graph.
- Students will explore the relationship between the wavelength and frequency of sound wave as it relates to the wave's period.
- Students will describe the relationship between the sound pressure (intensity) and the simulation of a compression wave.
- Students will discover the relationship between intensity, pressure and amplitude.
Vocabulary
- frequency
- period
- hertz
- compression waves
- wavelength
- amplitude
- decibels
- pressure
- longitudinal waves
About the Lesson
In this lesson, students will address the relationship between the points of high or low pressure in a sound wave as shown by the graphs and the points' repetition patterns as related to frequency.
As a result, students will:
- Explore the simulation of a sound wave.
- Discover the connection between frequency and pressure.
- Calculate the period of a wave and determine the corresponding frequency and wavelength.
- Explore the peaks and troughs of a wave and relate them to the amplitude of a wave.