Name: Kelsey Goodson

Date: November 3rd, 2015

Inquiry Based Science Lesson Plan

Professor Sandy Pesavento
Please list the following content for the plan, including 6 Es.
Subject Area
Essential Question(s)

Physical Science: Sound Energy

What makes it possible for you to
hear sound in your daily life?
How are sound energy and the
human ear connected?
Are our daily conversations simple
or complex? Why?

Title of the Lesson

Grade Level
Estimated Time
Summary of the Lesson

Can you hear me now?

Grade 4
40 minutes
The teacher will present a lesson in which
sound energy and the human auditory
system are intertwined. The lesson will
rely on multiple explanations, real world
connections, and a string telephone
experiment that encourages students to
make observations and to question the
world around them.
6 string telephones (composed of string,
paper cups, and paper clips), 25 follow
along worksheets, 25 explanations of the
human ear, 25 string telephone inquiry
worksheets, pens, sound energy
PowerPoint, lined paper, and inquisitive
minds.
4-PS3-2. Make observations to provide
evidence that energy can be transferred
from place to place by sound, light, heat,
and electric currents.
The students will be able to
identity how the human ear
processes sound.
The students will be able to make
observations concerning how

Materials Required

Academic Standards

Objectives

Vocabulary

Procedure
(Science Lesson Plan-Planning for Inquiry6E Model)

sound energy and the human ear

are related.
The students will be able to
investigate sound energy through
an inquiry based string telephone
experiment.
Sound wave, vibration, ear drum, inner
ear, middle ear, outer ear, cochlea, and
pitch.
Before:
Anticipatory Set: The teacher will
begin the lesson by asking the students to
first identity and then discuss their
favorite song. The students will pair share
what said song is with each other.
(Engagement)
Developing Schemas: The teacher will
ask the students to begin to think about
how they hear sounds in their daily life
and will reinforce this by playing an
actual piece of music (jazz). (Elearning)
Statement of Learning: The teacher
will inform the students that they will be
learning about sound energy and how it is
perceived by the human ear.
During: The teacher will direct student
attention to a follow along worksheet that
is to be used throughout the lesson as a
means to reinforce concepts and to keep
the students on target. The teacher will
wait for the students to fill in the relevant
portions before introducing students to
the concept of sound energy.
Teacher Modeling: The teacher will
emphasize that human beings perceive
sound energy on a daily basis through

many different mediums. In this way, the

teacher will reinforce real world
connections by relating sound energy to
our everyday conversations. The teacher
will direct the students attention to the
How the Ear Works handout.
Checking for Understanding: The
teacher will have several students read
each paragraph and provide a concise
explanation of the information after the
reading. The teacher will notate and
reinforce relevant vocabulary (sound
wave, inner, middle, outer ear, ear drum,
vibrations, cochlea, and pitch) throughout
the reading.
After the reading is finished, the teacher
will play an age appropriate video that
will further explain the How the Ear
Works handout. (Explanation)
Checking for Understanding: The
teacher will ask the students how the ear
drum is related to an actual drum.
Relevant aspects of the follow along
worksheet including the reflect and
stop and think components will be
completed. The teacher will wrap up this
segment by playing a video that tests
student hearing. This test reinforces the
real world inquiry component and helps
maintain high student engagement levels
by having the students self-assess their
hearing.
The teacher will begin explaining what
sound energy is and will outline how
sound occurs on a daily basis. The teacher
will compare sound to a drum and will
have students put their hand to their

throat and talk in both a low and high

voice to a partner. The students will
record and compare each of the respective
vibrations. (Elaboration)
Checking for Understanding: The
teacher will then ensure that the students
have finished their follow along
worksheet and will tell the students that
they are going to explore how sound
travels. The students will get into groups
of four and each student will receive an
inquiry chart.
Before beginning the experiment, the
students will predict how the string
telephone will conduct sound. The
students will then explore sound energy
by talking into the phone to a partner.
After one test, the students will involve a
variable that consists of a third student
pinching the string in the middle.
Students will observe what occurs and
will interpret why it happened as a group.
Observations will be recorded on the
inquiry chart. (Exploration)
After:
Checking for Understanding and
Closure: The teacher will regroup the
students and have them reflect on what
happened, what components fostered said
happening, and why. The teacher will
provide a formal explanation of the
experiment and will ask the students
whether or not their initial prediction at
the beginning of the lesson concerning
how sound works was correct. The
teacher will ask the students to rehash
what they learned and will close.
(Evaluation)

Assessment

Adaptations or Accommodations

Formative Assessment:
The teacher will assess the
students based on their ability to
reflect and fill out their follow
along worksheet throughout the
lesson.
The teacher will assess the
students based on their ability to
make observations and interpret
said observations on their inquiry
chart.
The teacher will assess the
students based on their ability to
answer questions throughout and
make appropriate real world
connections.
The teacher will assess the
students based on their oral
closure reflections.
Students are able to work in pairs and as
a group throughout the lesson. Students
with trouble reading could have a
simplified version of the How the Ear
Works worksheet and could have said
worksheet independently read or made
available to them as an audio recording.
Students could also work as partners or in
a group to complete the follow along
worksheet. Students with further
difficulties could instead draw a picture at
the end of the lesson to indicate their
understanding or could offer a written
form of representation.
Differentiation is inherent through the
presentation of information in multiple
mediums ranging from the aural, visual,
and kinesthetic. The learning
environment is cooperative with both
direct and indirect teaching.