School Visits

School of Noise is experienced in delivering high-quality, fun and educational activities for all ages. We have worked around the world in a wide range of locations including schools, pupil referral units, hospitals, museums, music and film festivals, art centres and libraries.

Science of Sound

In-school workshops exploring the science of sound and its many uses throughout the world from the sound design of electric cars and film effects, to extinguishing fires and designing buildings.

We cover how sounds are made (vibration, frequency, amplitude), how they travel (longitudinal/pressure waves, medium), and where they end up (hearing, absorption, reflection, energy).

We bring a range of equipment for students to play and experiment on including Chladni plates (patterns in sand caused by vibration), theremin, omnichord, telegraph key, tuning forks, model of a human ear, and fruits and vegetables that will trigger musical sounds when touched.

The workshops can help to kick-start a topic on sound or consolidate learning afterwards. It is suitable for students studying sound, as part of an enrichment lesson, or a STEM / STEAM activity.

Graphic Scores & Sound Drawings

Graphic Scores – Explore the variety of ways musical direction can be written down. Graphic scores allow the composer to be creative in deciding how they’d like their score to look and how they’d like it to be performed. Perhaps a score uses the roll of a dice to create chance directions? Or uses a map to take the performer on a journey? Some scores might have precise rules to follow, while others may simply be random scribbles on the page with no instructions leaving it entirely up to the performer to improvise and interpret.

Sound Drawings – a fun and creative way of expressing yourself and the noises you can hear through mark making. During the activity, different sounds are played for students to listen to. The sounds may include musical pieces, nature (water, wind, thunder), animals, or the sound of different objects etc. Participants are encouraged to draw what they can hear. Interpretations will differ from person to person. There is no wrong way to create a sound drawing!

Foley

Discover the hidden world of Foley sound design for film and TV. Often using an unusual assortment of items, Foley sounds recreate the movements of characters and objects seen on screen. Think coconut shells for horses hooves, tin foil and bubble wrap for the crackling of fire, and the crunching cornstarch for walking on snow. This fun, creative workshop offers an opportunity to use listening skills to match the right sounds, and record the Foley to fit with the moving images on screen.

A-Z of Sound Talk

An A-Z talk about sound. Suitable for ages 5+, this talk takes audiences through the alphabet introducing one interesting fact, instrument, or demonstration for each letter. From Acoustic Dispersion (laser sounds from a metal slinky), Borborygmus (rumbling sound from the stomach) and Clapping, to X-Ray bone records, Yodelling and the Zadar Sea Organ, this whistle-stop tour through sound offers something interesting for all ages.

Key Stage 2: Science – Sound

• Identify how sounds are made, associating some of them with something vibrating.
• Recognise that vibrations from sounds travel through a medium to the ear.
• Find patterns between the pitch of a sound and features of the object that produced it.
• Find patterns between the volume of a sound and the strength of the vibrations that produced it.
• Recognise that sounds get fainter as the distance from the sound source increases.

Key Stage 2: Music

• Experiment with, create, select and combine sounds.
• Play tuned and untuned instruments musically.
• Listen with concentration and understanding to a range of high-quality live and recorded music.
• Improvise and compose music for a range of purposes using the interrelated dimensions of music.
• Listen with attention to detail.
• Use and understand other musical notations (graphic scores).

Key Stage 3: Science – Sound waves

• Frequencies of sound waves, measured in hertz (Hz); echoes, reflection and absorption of sound.
• Sound needs a medium to travel, the speed of sound in air, in water, in solids.
• Sound produced by vibrations of objects, in loudspeakers, detected by their effects on microphone diaphragm and the ear drum; sound waves are longitudinal.
• The auditory range of humans and animals.

“This morning the kids were still talking about the instruments and how vibrations create art. This is how I know it has been a successful workshop!”
— Childeric Primary School

“Thank you for your brilliant sessions, the staff and children had nothing but positive feedback. We will definitely be booking in for next year.”
— Julian’s Primary School

“The girls had such a wonderful workshop with you and many of the parents commented on it today, thanks again for a really fantastic workshop.”
— Old Palace of John Whitgift School

“It has been a real pleasure having you in. Both teachers and our pupils have learnt so much from you. The pupils were so enthused about the workshop and it is something they will be talking about for a long time.”
— Whitehall Primary School

“Thank you so much, the children had a great time and have had their eyes opened to a whole new world of sound design and music-making that they didn’t know existed. There is a lovely musical buzz around the school.”
— Hamstel Junior School

“In 20 years of teaching that was one of the best in-school workshops I have ever seen.”
— Pimlico Academy

“Thank you so much for coming to St Marys, Rickmansworth to do a whole day of activities for my class. You were such a pleasure to have in school. As we reflected on our learning (from this term) this week, so many of the children’s highlights were from their day with you and they could recall much of what they had learned. They were captivated throughout the day and they were engaged with all the things you had to offer. Even on parents evening the other week, the children were recalling things they had done that day and I know many of them are now wanting to be Foley artists when they are older.”
— St Marys Primary School (Year 4)

Required resources

To run the workshops we require:

• Hall / classroom with 6 tables
• Access to mains power (minimum 2 sockets)
• Projector / Screen (HDMI or VGA)
• 1 hour set up & 30 minutes breakdown time
• Onsite parking where possible

Costs

Prices range from £250 for half a day to £400 for a whole day.

Other

• All staff have a DBS certificate on the update service
• Risk assessment and Public Liability Insurance provided on request

Contact details

For more information or to discuss a visit please contact:

Dan Mayfield – info@schoolofnoise.com – 07792137681