Light and Sound Unit – What do Isaac Newton, Alexander Graham Bell, and Albert Einstein all have in common? Students will find out in this COMPLETE Light and Sound Unit! Use the activities in science centers, interactive notebooks, or for group work. The Unit is all about light and sound energy, including vibrations, reflection, and refraction, pitch, frequency, volume, and so much more!
Your students will love this complete and interactive unit packed full of activities and a flipbook!
If you take a step outside and carefully listen, you’re sure to hear something. Can you hear an airplane flying far off in the distance, a dog barking next door, or birds chirping in your yard? All around you, sounds are being created by people, places, and things. What exactly is a sound, and how are you able to hear one?
With this complete unit, students will learn about the amazing world of light and sound! This Light and Sound Non-fiction Resource includes many interactive activities and learning opportunities for students with informational articles on:
✔ What is light?
✔ Our Amazing Eyes
✔ Reflection & Refraction
✔ Transparent, Translucent, or Opaque?
✔ Concave and Convex
✔ Lens, Prisms, & Rainbows
✔ What is Sound?
✔ Our Extraordinary Ears
✔ Pitch, Frequency & Volume
✔ Parts of Human Ear & Eye
There are 3 character studies where students will meet important people who greatly influenced our world: Sir Isaac Newton, Alexander Graham Bell, and Albert Einstein. There are also customized biography organizers for reviewing or additional research. These provide a great way to integrate history across the curriculum.
This unit on Light and Sound includes several comprehension and interactive activities for students:
✔ Label the Parts of the Human Eye
✔ Label the Parts of the Human Ear
✔ Light & Sound Mystery Flaps
✔ Cloze Passages (2)
✔ Graphic Organizers for each concept (6)
✔ Vocabulary Posters (12)
✔ Vocabulary Flip Flaps
✔ PLUS a 6 page Sound and Light Flip-up booklet
✔ For Elementary Grades – Third grade, Fourth grade, Fifth grade
There are 3 main activities: Read.Connect.Create.
Vocabulary:
Introduce the vocabulary words with the real-life photo posters included. You could post these posters around the classroom and have students travel around to match up and define the words in their flip flaps or use as a center activity. These posters are excellent for a bulletin board display too.
Reading:
Next, have students read the informational articles about light and sound and complete the graphic organizers for each concept. Each article has comprehension questions and scenes for students to connect to the information. There are 3 character studies where students will meet important people who greatly influenced our world: Sir Isaac Newton, Alexander Graham Bell, and Albert Einstein. There are also biography organizers for reviewing or additional research. Have students complete the comprehension and connection questions, label the parts of the human eye and ear, mystery flaps, and cloze passages. Students could work with a partner, in small groups, or even as a center/station activity to read and complete the activities.
Activities:
Have students complete the Light and Sound Flip-Up Booklet. Students can build the flip-up book page by page. I usually have them do one page at each center or station. They can use the articles as a reference source to help them complete the pages of the flip-up. Lastly, they cut, color, and assemble the booklet. Flip-up books can be glued or stapled inside their interactive notebooks, file folder, or a 12×18 piece of construction paper folded like a book cover.


