Mighty Magnets
Curious about magnets and how they stick together? What about how they make some things move? Mighty Magnets introduces kids to the fundamentals of magnetic fields and how they occur. In this mini-course, kids will go on a magnetic scavenger hunt, play a Make-a-Magnet board game, measure the strength of different magnets and learn how to graph their data, and finally, make their own compass and treasure map!
Mini-course is provided as a 29-page PDF including a separate Science Tool Kit PDF to collect your badges.
Prefer a printed mini-course? Mighty Magnets is also available as a beautiful workbook here on Amazon.com.
Course Contents
- Story: Magnets. Learn what makes a magnet different from other objects. Did you know that the Earth is a giant magnet?
- Activity 1: Ferromagnetic Scavenger Hunt. What is magnetic in your home?
- Activity 2: Investigating Your Magnets! Measure the strength of your magnet and find out which objects can affect it. Learn to graph your data!
- Activity 3: “Give Me a Magnetic Moment” Card Game. Collect enough cards and be the first player to turn your game board into a magnet.
- Activity 4: Let Your Magnet Show the Way! Build a compass with just a bottle cap and needle. Use it to become a cartographer and make a map of your home.
- Curiosity Connector. Use these links to learn more about the properties of magnets and find other cool online magnet activities.
- Tools for Your Tool Kit. See if you can answer all the questions about magnets and magnetic fields to earn Tools for your Science Tool Kit.
- Glossary. Learn scientific terms used to describe magnets and their actions.
Materials Needed
Strong horseshoe magnet (roughly 4 inches in length), medium-sized bar magnet (roughly 2.5 inches in length), small, bendable refrigerator magnet, compass, 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 6 paper clips (jumbo size works best), Scotch tape, ruler or tape measure, scissors, pencil, blank paper for drawing, small plastic bag
Concepts and Ideas
Mighty Magnets includes the following Disciplinary Core Ideas as described in the Next Generation Science Standards:
Forces and Motion (PS2.A), Types of Interactions (PS2.B)
Scientific Expert Michele Caton.
Illustrations by Charlie Alolkoy.
