Magnets

Today, students experimented with magnets.  Students predicted what materials provided would be attracted by a magnet and then tested their predictions using bar magnets with their materials. Students learned that materials that are attracted by a magnet are called magnetic materials, while materials not attracted by a magnet are called non-magnetic materials. Students discovered that not all metals are magnetic.

Students used two bar magnets marked with a “north” pole and “south” pole to explore attraction and repulsion forces.  Students learned that opposite poles attract and similar poles repel.

Students were introduced to the magnetic field of the Earth.  Students then used a compass to draw the magnetic field around a bar magnet. Students learned that the field lines have the same shape as the Earth’s magnetic field.