Light, sound and waves home experiments and simulations

A selection of home experiments and online simulations that are suitable to use with your students aged 14-16 (KS3) whilst educating remotely to support and develop their understanding of Light, Sound and Waves.

Light:

• Marvin and Milo Garden Rainbow explores the visible spectrum.
• Marvin and Milo Deceptive CD investigates colour mixing and the addition of colour.
• Marvin and Milo Pouring Light looks at total internal reflection (and can link to teaching communications and the electromagnetic spectrum).
• Refraction and lenses (from The Physics Classroom) has a variety of simulations to investigate and model refraction - and also how to draw lens ray diagrams.
• PhET Geometric optics looks at lens ray diagrams and how changing factors about the lens affects the image produced (please note: select 'principle rays' from the list in the top left corner).
• Refraction and lenses (from The Physics Classroom) has a variety of simulations to investigate and model refraction.
• Marvin and Milo Reappearing Coin shows how refraction can be used for some optical illusions.
• Lighting a home with water bottles is an article looking at an innovative way to light your home! You could try making one of these at home (but don't go as far as drilling the holes in your roof...)

Sound:

• Teaching Sound Waves pull-out (from Classroom Physics) puts a few sound experiments together and includes a student sheet to help summarise key points.
• Measuring the speed of sound using echoes gives a method for students to do just that! This also helps to reinforce some of the key points used in speed/distance/time ultrasound calculations.
• Soundmeter apps (The link provided takes students to a free download of a 'software oscilloscope' that uses a computer's sound card) can be compared to Slink-o-scope to explain why a transverse graph is drawn to show displacement for a longitudinal sound wave.

General/other Waves: 

• Soundmeter apps (The link provided takes students to a free download of a 'software oscilloscope' that uses a computer's sound card) can be compared to Slink-o-scope to explain why a transverse graph is drawn to show displacement for a longitudinal sound wave.
• PhET waves intro has three animations that link to water waves, sound and light and introduce the terms frequency and amplitude. The water wave animation can also be used to replicate part of the GCSE waves required practical.
• Measuring the wavelength and speed of water waves using method 2 (can be done using baking trays or other suitable rectangular containers) gives an alternative to one part of the wave speed required practical - which can therefore be completed at home.
• Measuring the speed of a wave in a solid (for Edexcel) is described and demonstrated on BBC Bitesize.
• Marvin and Milo Eerie Blue Water - considers how sunlight contains some different parts of the electromagnetic spectrum other than just visible light.
• Marvin and Milo Pouring Light looks at total internal reflection (and can link to teaching communications and the electromagnetic spectrum).
• PhET Wave on a string explores a model for a transverse wave and looks at different factors that can be changed (if you get the settings right you should be able to produce a standing wave, which ties in nicely to required practicals at both GCSE)
• PhET radio waves and electromagnetic fields looks at how radio waves can be produced and how radio waves can induce an alternating current.
• PhET Blackbody spectrum enables students to investigate the effect of changing the temperature on the blackbody curve produced.