Mighty Magnets

Curious about magnets and how they stick together? What about how they make some things move? Designed for grades K-5 and to be done at home or with small groups, this interactive multi-activity mini-course introduces children to the fundamentals of magnetic fields and how they occur. The mini-course includes an illustrated story-based lesson as well as games, activities, and projects that appeal to all types of learners.

After reading an illustrated story and learning core concepts about magnetic fields, children explore different magnets and their properties through a series of experiments in which they are also taught to graph their own data. Children then get up and move by exploring their environment and reinforcing their observational skills in a ferromagnetic scavenger hunt. A make-a-magnet board game (included in the mini-course) is then used to reinforce how a magnet works. Finally, children learn to create their own compasses and use them to design their own maps.

Most materials needed to complete the mini-course can be cut from the book itself (or, if preferred, downloaded and printed using an included link). The mini-course requires minimal additional items to complete the activities: three magnets of different strengths, large shallow dish (such as a pie pan), plastic cap (from a milk or water jug), long sewing needle (check that it is ferromagnetic), at least six paper clips, scotch tape, ruler or tape measure, scissors, pencil, and blank paper for drawing.

Upon completing the mini-course, children will be provided with links to additional online resources and will earn new concept badges for their Science Tool Kit (included in the mini-course)-including magnetism, ferromagnetic, magnetic moment, and unpaired electron.