Refraction

Today we talked about refraction. Refraction is the bending of light as it passes from one substance to another. This happens because light travels at different speeds through different materials, causing light to appear bent.

The students observed refraction with laser pointers and different materials. The students drew diagrams of their observations.

Light Reflection

On Tuesday, we looked into the two different types of reflection, regular reflection and diffuse reflection.

1. Regular Reflection is when light rays all reflect at the same angle.

2. Diffuse Reflection is when light rays all reflect at different angles.

Laser Reflection Activity

We did an activity with laser pointers to see which types of surfaces have a regular reflection and a diffuse reflection: smooth, rough, shiny, and/or dull. 

We found out that smooth and shiny surfaces have a regular reflection, whereas rough and dull surfaces have a diffuse reflection. 

Electromagnetic Waves & Electromagnetic Spectrum

After sound, we started our light unit with talking about electromagnetic waves and the electromagnetic spectrum. We compared sound waves and electromagnetic waves, which transfer energy differently.

The challenge classes were split into groups to become experts on one type of electromagnetic wave. Each group researched their assigned EM wave and prepared a lesson about the EM wave to share with their classmates. The students presents a lot of very interesting information. 

The regular science classes made EM wave booklets to organize all the information about each type of wave.

String Telephone Lab

In the beginning of class, the students used the string telephones to explore the best way to communicate with the telephones. The string must be tight or the vibrations do not pass all the way through from cup to cup.

After five minutes of exploration, the students came back together in groups and designed an experiment to test. Groups decided which variable (independent variable) to change. Many groups choose to test which type of string works the best: regular string, yard, or fishing line. Other groups tested to see which cup works the best in the string telephone: stryofoam, paper, plastic, dixie, or tin can. Other groups tested string length to see if a shorter length allows you to hear the best.

In the back of the room, I had glasses full of different levels of water. The students made music by wetting their fingers and rubbing around the rim of each glass. We learned that the more water the glass has, the deeper or lower the pitch created.

Speed of Sound

Today we talked about whether sound would travel the fastest through a solid, liquid or gas. We demonstrated by acting as molecules. We stood in three separate lines, different spaces apart (one for solid, one for liquid, and one for gas).

Sound travels the fastest through a solid because the particles are closest together and therefore the particle to particle interaction can happen the fastest.

Speed of Sound in Different Mediums

The speed of sound in air is around 20 degrees Celsius is 343 m/s or 768 mph. We watched videos of different air crafts breaking the speed of sound and Felix Baumgartner breaking the speed of sound when he "sky dove" from 26 miles above Earth's surface.


We played more instruments the last couple of minutes of class.

The Best Thermos...

These two thermos were the best insulators. The best working thermos had a lid that went down into the water. The air in a thermos can help cool down the water faster. Without the air inside the thermos to circulate and cool off the water, the hot water can better maintain its temperature.

This thermos only lost 4 degrees Celsius. 

 This thermos lost a total of 3 degrees Celsius.

The Ear & Playing Instruments

2/5/13

Today we began by talking about the ear. We learned what the different parts of the ear did and why they were important.

Another topic we started on was loudness. The unit of measurement is decibels. The most decibels you can withstand without hearing damage is 85 dB. That is the sound of busy city traffic.

After, we each brought in instruments of our own to examine the ranges of each instrument. We played the highest pitch and the lowest pitch on each instrument.