Year 4 Sound Worksheet - Intermediate

Year 4 Sound worksheet for Year 4 (Key Stage 2 / Year 3-6 (Ages 7-11)). Intermediate level science practice, aligned to the UK National Curriculum. Print-ready with answer key included.

Science•Key Stage 2 / Year 3-6 (Ages 7-11)•Soundintermediate

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Sound Explorers: Vibrations, Pitch and Volume

Year 4 Science • Ages 8–9 • Intermediate

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Instructions: Work through the activities to explore how sounds are made and travel, and how pitch and volume can change. Read each question carefully and write your answers in the boxes. Use the information and results provided to explain your thinking.

Sound Begins with Vibrations

Use what you know about sound to complete each sentence. Choose precise science words and explain the cause where asked.

Word bank: vibrations, vibrate, sound, louder, quieter

1. A sound is made when an object begins to ___.

2. The quick back-and-forth movement of an object is called a ___.

3. A guitar string makes a sound when it ___.

4. If a drum skin vibrates more strongly, its sound is usually ___.

5. When a vibrating object’s movements become smaller, its sound usually becomes ___.

How Sound Travels

Answer using the ideas that sound travels from a vibrating source and can move through materials. Give a clear reason for each answer.

1. A bell rings in a classroom. What makes the sound at the source?

2. Sound travels from a speaker to your ear through the air. What carries the sound?

3. A ruler is held against a desk and tapped. The desk carries vibrations to your ear. Is the desk a solid, liquid or gas?

4. Can sound travel through empty space with no material in it? Write yes or no and give a reason.

5. A child hears a sound after it travels through air. Name the body part that detects the sound.

High and Low Pitch

Pitch describes how high or low a sound seems. Use the information in each question to decide which sound has the higher pitch or to explain how pitch changes.

1. A small bell makes a high note and a large drum makes a low note. Which has the higher pitch?

2. A ruler is plucked gently when only a short length hangs over the desk, then when a longer length hangs over. Which length usually makes the higher-pitched sound?

3. A string vibrates quickly. Is its sound likely to have a high or low pitch?

4. A string vibrates slowly. Is its sound likely to have a high or low pitch?

5. Complete the sentence: Faster vibrations usually make a ___-pitched sound.

Loudness and Distance

Volume describes how loud or quiet a sound is. Read each situation and answer with a short explanation where requested.

1. A drum is struck gently and then struck harder. Which strike is likely to make the louder sound?

2. What happens to the volume of a sound as you move further away from its source?

3. A person whispers, then shouts the same word. Which voice has the greater volume?

4. A vibrating object moves back and forth with bigger movements. Is its sound usually louder or quieter?

5. A class wants to make a sound quieter. Name one safe way to reduce the sound reaching their ears.

Sound Investigation Results

A class plucked the same ruler in three ways and rated the sounds. Read the table carefully. Answer the questions using the results and your knowledge of vibrations.

Test	Overhanging ruler length	Pluck	Class observation
A	Short	Gently	High and quiet
B	Short	Hard	High and loud
C	Long	Gently	Low and quiet

1. Which test made the loudest sound?

2. Which two tests made a high-pitched sound?

3. Compare tests A and B. What changed, and what happened to the volume?

4. Compare tests A and C. What changed, and what happened to the pitch?

5. What evidence suggests that changing the ruler’s vibrations can change the sound?

Check Your Sound Science

Choose the best answer for each question. Think about the difference between pitch and volume, and about how sound travels.

1. What must happen for most sounds to be produced?

2. Which sound has the highest pitch?

3. Which change is most likely to make a drum sound louder?

4. Through which material can sound travel?

5. What does volume describe?

Answer Key

Activity 1: vibrate ; vibrations ; vibrates ; louder ; quieter

Activity 2: 1. The bell vibrates ; 2. Air (the air carries the sound vibrations) ; 3. Solid ; 4. No, sound needs a material to travel through ; 5. Ear

Activity 3: 1. The small bell ; 2. The shorter overhanging length ; 3. High ; 4. Low ; 5. high

Activity 4: 1. The harder strike ; 2. It usually becomes quieter ; 3. The shout ; 4. Louder ; 5. Accept a suitable answer, such as moving further away, making the source quieter, or using ear defenders.

Activity 5: 1. Test B ; 2. Tests A and B ; 3. The pluck changed from gentle to hard; the sound became louder ; 4. The overhanging length changed from short to long; the pitch became lower ; 5. Accept: the tests produced different pitch or volume when the ruler was plucked differently, showing that changing its vibrations changed the sound.

Activity 6: 1. An object vibrates ; 2. A quickly vibrating string ; 3. Striking it harder ; 4. Air ; 5. How loud or quiet a sound is