Reiterate that neither wave changed the original position of the students. A wave is a disturbance that travels through matter. This can be related to students through their experience of seeing a leaf, bug or duck on the surface of water when a wave passes them. They only move up and down, they do not get carried away by the wave. There are two types of waves that students should be familiar with - transverse and longitudinal.
Sound waves are longitudinal waves, light waves are transverse.
Sound waves require a medium to travel through - in a vacuum there is no sound because there is no medium for the vibration to travel through. To print out the Student Copy only, click here . Materials Slinky Procedure Follow directions in the data sheet and record observations. To print out the Data Sheet only, click here . Have one partner hold one end of the slinky on the floor.