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1st grade · Science · Unit 3 of 12

Signals Far Away

Use light and sound to send messages.

What your child practices

Practices how light and sound can carry a message over a distance, from flashlights and whistles to drums and signal flags, and how to design a simple signal.

Alabama Course of Study content standard: 1.4 · using light or sound to send a signal over a distance

How we explain it

Children can open this short lesson before they practice.

  1. Light and sound can send messages far away.
  2. A traffic light is a light signal. A horn is a sound signal.
  3. A code is a set signal, like 3 flashes for hello.

Example: Is a bike bell a light signal or a sound signal? You hear a bell ring. Hearing means sound. Answer: a sound signal

Signals Far Away in Alabama

In the Alabama Course of Study, this is unit 3 of 12 in 1st grade Science, after Light and Sound and before Animal Survival.

Gradelings describes a child's practice on this unit as Beginning, Approaching, Meeting or Exceeding (Four practice steps). That reflects practice, not a report-card mark: the teacher decides the mark.

Source: Alabama State Department of Education (ALSDE)

Sample questions

A taste of this unit. In the app, questions change every time and get easier or harder to match your child.

  1. Question 1

    Which tool sends a light signal?

    • A drum
    • A flashlight
    • A whistle
    • A bell

  2. Question 2

    Two cups and a string make a…

    • drum
    • mirror
    • cup phone
    • lamp

  3. Question 3

    Which tool makes a loud sound?

    • A pillow
    • A feather
    • A drum
    • A sponge

  4. Question 4

    A fire truck uses lights and a siren to…

    • warn people
    • make food
    • sleep
    • sing songs

  5. Question 5

    A red traffic light tells drivers to…

    • go fast
    • honk
    • stop
    • turn on lights

  6. Question 6

    Which needs light to work?

    • Bell
    • Whistle
    • Drum
    • Signal mirror

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