Title: The Telephone, Cont’d Subject/Course: Science Time: 40 minutes

Level: 4

Lesson Description
Students will continue exploring the principles of sound (resonance, vibrations, volume), through the string
telephone. In this continuation of the experiment, students will use new materials to build their telephone and test
their device. Students should be able to extend this activity until they can talk to a minimum of 4 people on the string
telephone. Extended Goal: to get the entire class hooked up on the telephone.

Stage 1: Desired Results

Big Question (link to the real world)
How does sound travel through solids? How has this concept affected our lives?
Ontario Curriculum Overall Expectation
2. Investigate the characteristics and properties of light and sound
3. Demonstrate an understanding of light and sound as forms of energy that have specific characteristics and
properties.
Ontario Curriculum Specific Expectation
- 2.3 Investigate the basis properties of sound (conduct an experiment to show that sound can be transmitted
through solids)
- 2.4 Use technological problem-solving skills to design, build and test a device that makes use of the properties
of light or sound (a paper-cup telephone)
- 3.4 Describe properties of sound - sound travels, sound can be transmitted through solids, sound is affected
by volume.
Key Concepts and/or skills to be learned/applied: Prior Knowledge Activation:
- How sound is transmitted through solids - How sound is transmitted through different
- How different materials change the outcome mediums
of the experiment. - How the tightness of a wire/string can affect how
sound travels
- Changing materials to see their effect on the
experiment.
Stage 2: Planning learning experience and instruction
Learning Goals: “clearly identify what students are Instructional Strategies: See Chapter 6 Gregory and
expected to know and be able to do, in language that Chapman, Beyond Monet PDF, Wees “56 different
students can readily understand.” examples of formative assessment”.
Success criteria: “describe in specific terms what successful
attainment of the learning goals looks like” (Growing
Success p. 33).
Learning Goals: Post a picture of the group of six doing the paper cup
- Students will learn how sound transmits telephone experiment from last week to re-introduce
through solids the topic. This should also allow the class to predict
- Students will learn how different materials where the lesson is going before it has begun.
enhance/inhibit the final outcome of the Review the previous lesson on the telephone and
experiment. introduce the new ideas. Review instructions. Hand
Success Criteria: out materials.
- Students will be able to explain how the
telephones worked.
 - Students will be able to brainstorm ideas for
creating better telephones.
Materials/Student Groupings Differentiation
Yarn Those wishing to add a written explanation to
question 2 may do so but just drawing a picture
Pencils will suffice.
For students with particular difficulty explaining
Erasers themselves on paper, student-teacher
conferences during observation period can be
Plastic Cups held with the teacher giving prompts,
rephrasing or reframing the question, and
Worksheets taking notes (*specific focus on Kadence and
Braydon).
Assessment Sheet

Assessment For Learning, Checking for Understanding & Feedback

Students will fill out a worksheet at the end of the class to demonstrate their understanding of the experiment
and the way that light travels. They will draw a sad, happy or neutral face at the end to show the teacher how
confident they felt about their knowledge of sound transmitting through solids. This will also the teacher to talk
with students who a) drew a sad face or b) drew a happy face but from their work are clearly not understanding.
This is also a helpful tool to have in their portfolio to show their parents.
Stage 3: Learning Activity
Motivational Hook (20 MINS.):
The last time I was here, we explored resonance, vibrations, and volume through the paper cup
telephone. I was really impressed by how fast you all caught on with this experiment. Originally this was
meant to be done in partners, but before long you were connecting the phone so that you could have a
conversation between four people, and then six. It answered a question that Zinedine asked me at the
beginning of class: “Can you use this phone to have a conversation between three or more people?” The
answer is yes, and that’s something you didn’t need me to tell you, because you discovered it by yourselves.
Those are fantastic questions to ask when you’re doing experiments like this.

Open (10 MINS):

Today I’m asking you a question, and I want to see if you can give me an answer by the end of the class.
We’re going to do the telephone experiment again, but with different materials. Today we’re using yarn and
plastic cups. My question is, “How do these materials change the way we hear the sound traveling from one
cup to another?” When we’re all finished with the first part of the experiment, we’re going to see if we can
hook up the entire class to the phone system.

Let’s review the instructions quickly. The plastic cups are much harder to poke holes in, so I already
did that. What do you do now that you have the yarn? And how do we speak into the cup? The person on
the other end should be doing what?

Body (modeling, collaborative work, individual = gradual release of responsibility, synthesis) (10 MINS):
So, can I have my supply managers come and had out materials?

*Students will then work in pairs, growing into groups of fours and sixes, connecting their phones*

*At 2:20pm we’ll start trying to connect the entire class. If we’re successful, then we’ll move on directly to
filling out the sheets. If we haven’t connected the class by 2:35pm then we’ll start filling out the sheets at that
time.*

Close (success criteria visited) (15 MINS): Students will fill out their worksheets explaining their understanding of
the experiment before moving on to their agendas at 2:50pm.

Stage 4: Reflection
Student Reflection of Learning (metacognition)

Teacher Reflection (WWW/EBI)

Script:

The last time I was here, we explored resonance, vibrations, and volume through the
paper cup telephone. I was really impressed by how fast you all caught on with this experiment.
Originally this was meant to be done in partners, but before long you were connecting the phone
so that you could have a conversation between four people, and then six. It answered a
question that Zinedine asked me at the beginning of class: “Can you use this phone to have a
conversation between three or more people?” The answer is yes, and that’s something you
didn’t need me to tell you, because you discovered it by yourselves. Those are fantastic
questions to ask when you’re doing experiments like this.

Today I’m asking you a question, and I want to see if you can give me an answer by the
end of the class. We’re going to do the telephone experiment again, but with different materials.
Today we’re using yarn and plastic cups. My question is, “How do these materials change the
way we hear the sound traveling from one cup to another?” When we’re all finished with the first
part of the experiment, we’re going to see if we can hook up the entire class to the phone
system.

Let’s review the instructions quickly. The plastic cups are much harder to poke holes in,
so I already did that. What do you do now that you have the yarn? And how do we speak into
the cup? The person on the other end should be doing what?

So, can I have my supply managers come and had out materials?

*Students will work in pairs, growing into groups of fours and to groups of sixes, connecting their
phones*.

*At 2:20pm we’ll start trying to connect the entire class. If we’re successful, then we’ll move on
directly to filling out the sheets. If we haven’t connected the class by 2:35pm then we’ll start
filling out the sheets at that time.*

Worksheet:

1. How well did the string telephone work? Describe your observation.
2. Where do the sound waves travel in the string telephone?

Draw a picture in the space below and show arrows for where the sound went.

3. What could you do to make the string telephone work better?

 4. Do you think you understand how the string telephone works? Draw a smiley face for yes, a sad face
for no, and a neutral face if you’re somewhere in the middle.

Observation Tool:

Observation Log

Date:______________
Expectation:
Subject:____________

Look Fors:

Complete/Thorough

Standard

Approaching