Sound & VibrationsGrade 1 Science for Kids

Loud and soft, high and low: how sounds are made.

Sound & Vibrations helps first graders sort loud and soft sounds, make rice dance on a drum to see vibrations and find out what makes sounds high or low. Interactive sound science kids can see and hear.

  • Grade 1 · Ages 6–7
  • 3 lessons
  • 3 experiments
  • 12 practice questions
  • About 25 min
Start Learning Free Open the Course
  • Sounds All Around
  • Loud or Soft?
  • Vibrations Make Sound
  • Dancing Rice
  • High and Low Sounds
  • High or Low?

Science lab course · Grade 1

Sound & Vibrations · Learning goals

What Your Child Will Learn

Sort loud and soft sounds, make rice dance on a drum to see vibrations, and find out what makes sounds high or low.

  • Sounds can be loud or soft. We hear them with our ears.
  • Sound is made by vibrations. Bigger vibrations make louder sounds.
  • Fast vibrations make high sounds and slow vibrations make low sounds.

Why it matters

Why This Matters for Kids

  • Sounds are vibrations

    Seeing rice bounce shows kids that sound is made by things moving back and forth.

  • Listening skills

    Comparing loud, soft, high and low sounds sharpens careful listening.

  • Music and science

    Understanding pitch connects science to music and instruments.

Inside Sound & Vibrations

How the Course Works

Each level has a short read-aloud lesson, an interactive experiment and a mini quiz.

  1. Step 1 · Lesson

    Sounds All Around

    We hear sounds with our ears.

  2. Step 2 · Experiment

    Loud or Soft?

    Let's listen like scientists. Is each sound loud or soft?

  3. Step 3 · Lesson

    Vibrations Make Sound

    Sounds are made when something vibrates: it moves back and forth very fast.

  4. Step 4 · Experiment

    Dancing Rice

    Let's sprinkle rice on a drum and hit it harder each time. How high will the rice jump?

  5. Step 5 · Lesson

    High and Low Sounds

    Sounds can be high, like a bird's tweet, or low, like a lion's roar.

  6. Step 6 · Experiment

    High or Low?

    Let's listen carefully. Is each sound high or low?

Lesson preview

A Peek Inside the Lesson

This is the real lesson text your child hears, read aloud by a friendly voice.

Sounds All Around

We hear sounds with our ears.

Some sounds are loud, like a fire truck. Some are soft, like a whisper.

Very loud sounds can hurt our ears, so we cover them.

Vibrations Make Sound

Sounds are made when something vibrates: it moves back and forth very fast.

Touch your throat and hum. Can you feel it buzz?

A guitar string vibrates. A drum skin vibrates too!

Bigger vibrations make louder sounds.

High and Low Sounds

Sounds can be high, like a bird's tweet, or low, like a lion's roar.

Small things often make high sounds. Big things often make low sounds.

Fast vibrations make high sounds. Slow vibrations make low sounds.

For parents

Try It at Home

Learning sticks best when kids use it in real life. Here are simple ideas from this course.

Parent Tip

Stretch rubber bands over a box and pluck them. Ask your child which band makes the highest sound and why.

Loud or Soft?

  1. Sit outside quietly for one minute.
  2. Count the sounds you hear.
  3. Which were loud and which were soft?

Sounds can be loud or soft. We hear them with our ears.

Dancing Rice

  1. Stretch plastic wrap tight over a bowl.
  2. Put a few grains of rice on top.
  3. Bang a pot near it. Watch the rice jump!

Sound is made by vibrations. Bigger vibrations make louder sounds.

High or Low?

  1. Fill glasses with different amounts of water.
  2. Tap them gently with a spoon.
  3. Which glass sounds highest?

Fast vibrations make high sounds and slow vibrations make low sounds.

Practice

Grade 1 Science Practice Questions

Real questions from Sound & Vibrations. Try them with your child, then tap to see the answer.

  1. Question 1

    What do we hear with?

    • A.Our nose
    • B.Our ears
    • C.Our toes
    Show answer

    Our ears

  2. Question 2

    What makes sound?

    • A.Colors
    • B.Smells
    • C.Vibrations
    Show answer

    Vibrations

  3. Question 3

    Which sound is high?

    • A.A bird tweet
    • B.A lion roar
    • C.Thunder
    Show answer

    A bird tweet

The full course has 12 questions with instant feedback, stars and rewards. Create a free account to play them all.

Sound & Vibrations · Questions from parents

Frequently Asked Questions

What age is this course for?

Sound & Vibrations is a grade 1 science course for kids ages 6–7. That is Year 2 science in the UK and Year 1 in Australia. It also works well for review in the next grade, or as a challenge for a confident younger learner.

What will my child learn?

Sort loud and soft sounds, make rice dance on a drum to see vibrations, and find out what makes sounds high or low. Along the way they practice: Sounds can be loud or soft. We hear them with our ears; Sound is made by vibrations. Bigger vibrations make louder sounds; Fast vibrations make high sounds and slow vibrations make low sounds.

How long does the course take?

About 25 minutes in total, split into 3 short levels. Most kids finish it over two or three sessions. Progress is saved, so they can stop any time and pick up where they left off.

Is this course free?

Sound & Vibrations is part of SkillBloom Premium, which unlocks every course in every subject. Each subject also has free courses, so your child can try SkillBloom before you decide.

Does my child need to read well to use it?

No. Every lesson has a friendly read-aloud voice, questions are read aloud too, and the pictures help kids follow along. Confident readers can turn the voice off.

Can we use it for homeschool?

Yes. SkillBloom is built for homeschooling families. Kids work through lessons, games and quizzes on their own, and the parent dashboard shows what they finished and which skills need more practice. It works on phones, tablets and laptops.

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