What Is Sound?
Sound and vibrations
Duration: 1:54
Boom, boom goes the drum! Tweet, tweet sings the bird! What is sound, and how does it get to our ears? Make some noise with our little explorer and find out!
In short
Every sound starts with something that shakes back and forth very, very fast: this is called a vibration. Put your hand on your throat and hum: you can feel your voice vibrating! When we hit a drum, the top of the drum vibrates, and when we pluck a guitar string, the string vibrates. The vibration pushes the air, and the air passes it on, like a wave, all the way to your ears. Sound can travel through air, through water, and even through walls, which is how you can hear music from the next room. Inside your ear, a tiny drum called the eardrum starts to vibrate too, and your brain says: I hear a sound! A big vibration makes a loud sound, like a lion's roar, and a small one makes a soft sound, like a whisper. Fast vibrations make high sounds, like a little bird, and slow vibrations make low sounds, like a big bear. Very loud sounds can hurt your ears, so if it gets too loud, cover your ears or move away.
What you will learn
- Every sound starts with a vibration: something shaking back and forth very fast
- How to feel your own voice vibrate
- How drums and guitar strings vibrate
- How sound travels through the air like a wave, and even through water and walls
- How your eardrum and your brain help you hear
- Loud and soft sounds, and high and low sounds
- How to protect your ears from very loud sounds
Let's talk about it
Questions to ask after watching, at home or in class. Tap a question to see a short answer.
What is a vibration?
Something shaking back and forth very, very fast. Every sound starts with one!
How does a sound get to your ears?
The vibration pushes the air, and the air passes it on like a wave, all the way to your ears.
What should you do if a sound is too loud?
Cover your ears, or move away.
