Over the last month, Laura's Grade 1 class has been experimenting with sound. This week, our goal was to prepare the students with the skills to record sound with their iPads. Next week, we will be going on an in-school field trip around the campus to record sounds in different areas. Stay tuned for an update on how that goes!
iPad Eyes and Ears
I started by introducing the eyes and ears of the iPad to the class. Eyes and ears? You might know them better as the camera and microphone. First, all the students identified where their own eyes and ears were. Then we identified the iPad’s eyes and ears. With everyone thoroughly versed in the location of these, we practised closing the iPads eyes by reversing the case backwards over the lens. This helped students recognize that we were going to record only sound. Later, when we opened the camera app, the screen would be black!
Conducting the Soundmakers
Next, we practised making sounds as a group. Starting when I counted down 3, 2, 1 and ending when I made the "SAFE" sign in baseball. After practising a few times, the class got really good! Only a few stray quacks or moos squeaked out after the class went silent.
3, 2, 1 RECORD 🔴
Now it was time to record. Everyone had their iPads flat on their table, camera app open and set to video, camera facing the table so the screen was black. We then decided on the noises we would do as a class.
- Popcorn 🍿
- Ocean 🌊
- Honks 🚘
The popcorn sound was awesome. The class was all making different kinds of noises. Some with their mouths, some saying the word POP! While others clapped their cupped hands together. We recorded for 3 seconds and then… STOP!
We then had the whole class play the popcorn sounds back together on their iPads. It was pretty magical! The class sounded like a popcorn machine and the kids were really into it. We played it a couple more times before moving on.
For the next sound, I started conducting a bit differently. Some of the class was responsible for whooshing noises, others for wind noises, and others for bird and whale noises! Again we counted down, recorded for 3 seconds and stopped. The playback of this sound was pretty wild. There was texture and differences in the different spots in the classroom, and the students were really listening to hear the different noises as it played back.
Lastly, we ended with traffic and honking noises. But, as Jen on our team knows, I like to drive like water. So, at the end of the recording I had them all take a deep breath and let out a calming sigh... ain't no way we were going to let all that traffic raise our anxiety!
We recorded our final soundscape, but right before we stopped I guided their breath with an overly mimed breath of my own before signalling to STOP the recording. The resulting recording started chaotic but ended with a lovely silence.
School Soundscapes 🏫
Next week, during our in-school field trip, Laura’s class will be carrying their iPads around the school to record sounds from different areas. Then, when they return to the classroom, they’ll play back the sounds and attempt to identify the location. 🙌
The Magic of Making Sound 🪄
Here’s a great video to prime your class on the use of sounds in entertainment. You’ve probably heard the work of sound artists, without even knowing it. They use props to artificially create the sounds we hear in TV shows, movies and animation!