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Trial 1 - Messing Around

1. Connect a microphone to your computer if there is none built in. Refer to Technical Hints to connect the microphone. Start the sound drapher. Refer to Technical Hints to use the sound grapher.

   
2. Try out the sound grapher for 5 minutes. Make as many different kinds of sounds with your voice as you can -- loud and soft, high and low, different vowels, mouth open and closed. The sounds need to be steady so that you can see their pattern. Observe each sound with the Sound Grapher and think about how it looks. Use the Stop button on the Sound Grapher to study each sound.
   
3. Make one long aaaa sound (as in the word 'say'). Keep the picture of the sound by hitting Stop.
   
   
4. Observe the graph. Do different bumps on the graph look similar? Can you find a repeating pattern in the sound? What does the pattern look like? Use words and a drawing to describe the pattern. Refer to Technical Hints to use the drawing tool.
   
   
   
5. Start the sound grapher. Refer to Technical Hints to use the sound grapher. Make one long uuuu sound (as in the word 'moo'). Keep the picture of the sound by hitting Stop.
   
   
6. Observe the graph. Do different bumps on the graph look similar? Can you find a repeating pattern in the sound? What does the pattern look like? Use words and a drawing to describe the pattern. Refer to Technical Hints to use the drawing tool.
   
   
   
7. The two sounds you recorded (aaaa...as in say and uuuu...as in moo) are shown below. Is there a difference in the pattern of the bumps on each graph or are the bumps repeated in similar ways? If there is a difference, describe how the repeating patterns differ. [need to show the two patterns here]

   
   

8. Start the sound grapher. Refer to Technical Hints to use the sound grapher. Create a 'hissing' sound (shshshsh). Keep the picture of the sound by hitting Stop.
   
   
9. Observe the graph. Do different bumps on the graph look similar? Does the shshsh graph have a repeating pattern? Use words and a drawing to describe the pattern. Refer to Technical Hints to use the drawing tool.
   
   
   
10. Your uuuu and shshshsh sounds are shown below. Describe the difference in the pattern of the bumps on each graph. Describe how the graphs differ in the number of bumps and how close together they are. When the bumps are closer together, it means they happen more quickly. This is called their "frequency", that is, how frequently they happen. Another word for "frequency" is "pitch". [need to show sound images here]
    
    
11. Start the aound grapher. Refer to Technical Hints to use the sound grapher. Try creating another sound that displays smooth and repeated bumps on the graph with the Sound Grapher. This type of graph with a smooth repeating pattern is sometimes called a simple wave or 'pure' sound. Keep the picture of the sound by hitting Stop.
    
    
12. Using your voice, try several different sounds that make different patterns on the sound grapher. Different vowels will make different patterns. The sound should be steady to get a good picture.
    
    
13. Now it is your turn to choose another vowel sound (other than aaaa or uuuu sounds) that you use in words. Try creating a graph of the sound using the sound grapher. Keep the picture of the sound by hitting Stop.
    
    
14. What word can be used to describe your vowel sound?
    
    
15. Observe your graph. Does the pattern of different vowels look similar? Can you find a repeating pattern in the sound? Make a drawing of the repeating pattern. Technical Hints