Magnetism and Polarity Testing Station
Explore the principles of magnetic force by testing which household items are magnetic, mapping magnetic fields with iron filings, and observing polarity interactions.
- Takes
- 45 min
- Your setup
- 10 min prep
- Ages
- Ages 6–10
- Mess
- Some mess
- Cost
- $
- Where
- Indoors
How to do it
- 1Establish a hypothesis: Which items will be attracted to the magnet?
- 2Systematically test each household item and record results in a chart (Magnetic/Non-Magnetic).
- 3If using iron filings, place a magnet beneath a sheet of paper and sprinkle the filings lightly to visualize the magnetic field lines.
- 4Use two magnets to demonstrate attraction and repulsion, explaining the North/South polarity concept.
What they're practising
- Physics Concepts
- Material Science
- Classification Skills
- Predictive Reasoning