Transverse or Longitudinal?

Transverse or Longitudinal? Worksheet (Grade 6 Science, TEKS 6.8C)

Practice telling waves apart with one simple question: how do the particles move? This one-page sheet gives a quick rule box, then asks students to sort wave diagrams and doodle scenes, such as a plucked guitar string, a speaker, a drum, a jump rope, an earthquake, and a school bell.

What's Inside

• A Big Question box: "How can you tell what kind of wave it is?"
• A rule box for transverse and longitudinal waves
• Activity 1: Students sort four wave pictures as T or L
• Activity 2: Students sort six real scenes as T or L
• A visual answer key with answers marked in red

How Teachers Use It

Use it as practice for TEKS 6.8C. The sheet takes about 10 minutes, needs no prior knowledge, and prints clearly in black and white.

This worksheet is part of the Reading in Science series for grade 6. It supports TEKS 6.8C: explain how energy is transferred through transverse and longitudinal waves. It is one of five connected TEKS 6.8C sheets: what a wave is, transverse and longitudinal waves, parts of a wave, sorting waves, and a claim, evidence, and reasoning task.

Why It Works

Each sheet opens with a Big Question, teaches the key terms in plain words with simple black-and-white doodles and clear wave diagrams, and then asks students to use only what the page taught. The vocabulary stays tight to what the standard needs, and the visual answer key lets teachers check work fast.