A research‐based approach to teaching the basic concepts of musical instruments with low cost instruments.

A week long unit covering the basic concepts of musical instruments/voice (source of vibration, resonance, and a way to change pitch) will be presented. Students often do not pick up on these basic ideas of musical instruments from a straight forward clear lecture. Physicists typically are trying to teach them why instruments work, which means focusing on what is common about all instruments. While typically their previous instruction (music classes, for example) tried to teach them how to categorize instruments focusing on what is different. It appears that this prior instruction, and the fact that sound waves are invisible make this a difficult topic for students. The unit includes the use of a homemade straw instrument, cup instrument, and reed instrument. Students compare and contrast different types of instruments in an attempt to generalize the necessary characteristics of musical instruments. They also investigate their own voices, an interactive simulation on resonance, and an interactive lecture ...