Wind Instruments: Cracking the Code

Note: As you progress through the WebQuest, refer to this process page often.  It will guide you through each step and tell you what you need to read and where you need to go.

A. Begin by visiting this website: http://www.sfskids.org/templates/home.asp?pageid=1.  Click on "Instruments of the Orchestra" at the top of the left-hand side bar.

B. Read the introduction box and then click on the orange button labeled "Woodwinds".  After reading this introduction, click on the following instruments to read about them:

1. Flute
2. Oboe
3. Clarinet

Note: If there is a word you do not understand anywhere in the WebQuest, please go to http://dictionary.reference.com/ and type the word into the search bar at the top.

C. Click on the orange box labeled "Brass" and read the introduction box.  Click on the following instruments to read about them:

1. Trumpet
2. French Horn
3. Trombone

D. Visit http://cnx.org/content/m11897/latest/. Read only the information under the headings "Woodwinds" and "Brass", paying special attention to the information about the flute, oboe, clarinet, saxophone, trumpet, French horn, and trombone.

E. Download the file "Crime Scene Clues" from the bottom of the page and print it out. Be sure to write your name and the date in the appropriate place.

F. Read through the clues and fill in the blanks with any answers you can remember.

G. Go back and search for any answers you do not remember. All of the answers will be found on the provided websites.

H. Download the file "The Final Clue" from the bottom of the page and print it out. Write your name and the date in the appropriate place.

I. Place the letter above the blank numbered "1" from your answer page into the first final clue blank. Place the letter above blank "2" into the second final clue blank and so on until you have cracked the code.

J. Return to the websites provided and search for information on this code word. Choose three important facts about it and, using your own words, write them into the three spots provided on the final clue page.

K. The debriefing: Watch the following videos.  Use the bottom of the "Final Clue" page to list adjectives that describe how each instrument sounds to you. 

1. Flute: http://youtube.com/watch?v=n25mDmcBC6E
2. Oboe: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jVbT8XQkJx8
3. Clarinet: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8i4VQo4Q8bo
4. Saxophone: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KeTYxQkYfQw
5. Trumpet: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F5yvcEr4p_M
6. French horn: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W5DxoZ_WLww
7. Trombone: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mHw8P8NnUvI
   

You have cracked the code! The police chief thanks you for your work in solving this case. Remember to turn in to Ms. Linder:

• Your answers to the questions
• The final code word
• A list of three facts about the code word
• Your descriptions of how each instrument sounds