1st Grade Sound & Light Practice: Questions, Answers and Tips
Looking for 1st grade sound & light practice? Below are worked examples, the mistakes students make most, and practice questions with an answer key.
4 min read
In this article
Looking for 1st grade sound & light practice? Below are worked examples, the mistakes students make most, and practice questions with an answer key.
Every example below comes from BAMS Academy's Sound & Light practice, the same questions students answer on the site.
Sound & Light in 1st grade, skill by skill
How sound and light travel and are perceived. BAMS Academy breaks the unit into the skills below (part of all 1st grade science topics). Each comes with one of its practice questions.
Distinguish light sources from reflectors and relate shadow length to the sun’s position
Think about a mirror in a bright room. Which is true? (Choices: It reflects light from something else; It makes its own light.)
Answer: It reflects light from something else. a mirror in a bright room does not make light of its own. It only bounces light that came from a source like the sun or a lamp.
Does the sun make its own light, or reflect light? (Choices: It reflects light from something else; It makes its own light.)
Answer: It makes its own light. the sun is a light source — it makes its own light.
When the sun is low in the sky early in the morning, shadows are… (Choices: Short shadows; Long shadows.)
Answer: Long shadows. When the sun is low in the sky early in the morning, you get long shadows. The lower the sun, the longer the shadow it casts.
Connect sound to vibrating objects
Is sound being made right now in a bell that has stopped ringing? (Choices: It has stopped vibrating; It is vibrating.)
Answer: It has stopped vibrating. a bell that has stopped ringing: it has stopped vibrating. Sound is made when something vibrates, and it stops when the vibrating stops.
What is happening in a guitar string that has just been plucked? (Choices: It has stopped vibrating; It is vibrating.)
Answer: It is vibrating. a guitar string that has just been plucked: it is vibrating. Sound is made when something vibrates, and it stops when the vibrating stops.
Think about a cymbal shaking right after it is hit. What is true about it? (Choices: It is vibrating; It has stopped vibrating.)
Answer: It is vibrating. a cymbal shaking right after it is hit: it is vibrating. Sound is made when something vibrates, and it stops when the vibrating stops.
Worked examples
Example 1
Question: When the sun is high overhead at noon, shadows are…
- Long shadows
- Short shadows
How to solve it: When the sun is high overhead at noon, you get short shadows. The lower the sun, the longer the shadow it casts.
Answer: Short shadows
Why the other choices don't work:
- A student who picks "Long shadows" usually thinks shadows are longest when the sun is highest and brightest.
Example 2
Question: When the sun is almost straight above you in the middle of the day, shadows are…
- Long shadows
- Short shadows
How to solve it: When the sun is almost straight above you in the middle of the day, you get short shadows. The lower the sun, the longer the shadow it casts.
Answer: Short shadows
Why the other choices don't work:
- A student who picks "Long shadows" usually thinks shadows are longest when the sun is highest and brightest.
Common mistakes to watch for
- A student who picks "It makes its own light" usually the very common belief that the moon and mirrors glow on their own.
- A student who picks "Short shadows" usually thinks a low sun makes short shadows.
- A student who picks "It reflects light from something else" usually missed that some objects really do produce their own light.
- A student who picks "It is vibrating" usually thinks an object still makes sound after the shaking stops.
- A student who picks "It has stopped vibrating" usually missed that a sound you can hear means something is still shaking.
Try these practice questions
Does the moon at night make its own light, or reflect light?
- It reflects light from something else
- It makes its own light
What kind of shadows do you see when the sun is high overhead at noon?
- Long shadows
- Short shadows
When the sun is setting in the evening, shadows are…
- Long shadows
- Short shadows
Think about a shiny spoon on a sunny table. Which is true?
- It reflects light from something else
- It makes its own light
Answer key
- It reflects light from something else — the moon at night does not make light of its own. It only bounces light that came from a source like the sun or a lamp.
- Short shadows — When the sun is high overhead at noon, you get short shadows. The lower the sun, the longer the shadow it casts.
- Long shadows — When the sun is setting in the evening, you get long shadows. The lower the sun, the longer the shadow it casts.
- It reflects light from something else — a shiny spoon on a sunny table does not make light of its own. It only bounces light that came from a source like the sun or a lamp.
Keep practicing
The fastest way to build confidence is a few questions at a time, with feedback on each answer. Start with Sound & Light practice for grade 1, where every question comes with a step-by-step explanation.
More from BAMS Academy: