Chiming Fork Experiment and book review

The kiddos received a new book for Christmas, Usborne Activities 50 Science Things to Make and Do, and we love it! Every project to try is laid out very clearly with pictures and simple instructions. At the end of each is a section called “What’s going on?” and explains the science details of what you just did! It is recommended for ages 9+, but my kiddos love it and have understood the simple science concepts of each project so far!

The first experiment we chose to do was the Chiming Fork.

Objective: Find out how sound vibrations work.

Materials: Thread, fork, fingers, ears, table

Steps:

• Cut a length of thread as long as your arm. Tie the middle to a fork and wind the ends around your index fingers. Swing the fork so that it gently hits the table. What do you hear?
• Next, touch your index fingers to the flaps in front of your ear holes. Swing the fork gently against the table again. What do you hear?

Observations:

• Cutie Pie observed the fork initially made a “clunk” noise, just like the experiment described.
• The noise I heard when putting the thread to my ear was the same as when the fork hit the table initially.

Hypothesis:
Cutie Pie wonders if the weight of the thread would change the outcome of this experiment, or would affect the pitch of the noise heard when the thread is held close to the ear. We plan to do this experiment again to test his theories.

“What’s going on? When the fork hits the table it vibrates. This makes the air around it vibrate and you hear a dull clunk. But it makes the thread vibrate too. When you put the thread near your ears, you bring the thread closer to the sound sensors in your ears. You can hear the vibrations much more clearly. They now make a clear chiming sound in your ear.”

50 science things to make and do was given as a gift by a family member. I have not been compensated in any form by the publisher or author of this book. This review is based on my and my family’s honest enjoyment of this book.