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Science Launch G3 / Week 03 / Wednesday
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Week 03 · Magnet Mysteries

Wednesday

Magnet hunt
// Pushes and pulls without touching
⏱ about 15 min

Wednesday: Magnet Hunt

Rocket races around the kitchen, touching his magnet to everything. "It sticks to nothing!" he sighs.

Raven holds up a list. "Let's slow down and test one thing at a time. What do you notice?"

Nova scans the kitchen. "Make a guess before each test," she says. "Then check it."

Rocket grabs a pencil. This time he writes his predictions first.

Your investigation

You will test which objects a magnet attracts. Then you will test a magnet through cardboard.

  • One magnet
  • Steel paper clips
  • A small piece of aluminum foil
  • A piece of paper
  • A wooden pencil
  • A plastic bottle cap
  • A piece of thin cardboard, like a cereal box side
Safety first
Use one or two large magnets, like a bar magnet or a big fridge magnet.
A grown-up keeps tiny magnets away from babies and toddlers.
Magnets never go in your mouth.
  1. Before each test, predict: will the magnet attract it?
  2. Hold the magnet close to one object.
  3. Write yes if it is pulled. Write no if it is not.
  4. Test every object the same way.
  5. Last test: lay a paper clip on top of the cardboard.
  6. Move the magnet underneath the cardboard. Watch the clip.
MAKE A PREDICTION
  • Read the question.
  • Tap your answer.
Will the magnet move the paper clip through the cardboard?
Will the magnet attract the aluminum foil?
ObjectMy predictionAttracted? (yes or no)
Steel paper clip
Aluminum foil
Paper
Wooden pencil
Plastic cap
Clip on cardboard
What we foundTrue or false?
A magnet attracts steel paper clips.?
A magnet attracts every metal.?
Magnet pull can pass through thin cardboard.?
WHY THIS EXERCISEMagnets attract steel but not aluminum, and their pull passes through cardboard.

Sort your results

Look at your table. Put the objects into two groups: attracted and not attracted.

The attracted group has steel. Magnets attract iron, steel, nickel and cobalt.

The other group has paper, wood, plastic and aluminum.

SORT IT
  • Read the question.
  • Tap your answer.
Which group does the wooden pencil go in?
Which group does the steel paper clip go in?
Name a metal from your test that the magnet did NOT attract.
WHY THIS EXERCISEAluminum is a metal, but magnets do not attract it.

Great testing! Tomorrow we find out what happens when a magnet is farther away.

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