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What is an exciting experiment for elementary aged students that involves magnets?

I use some of the activities in these with campers age 7-15 in the summer. http://cse.ssl.berkeley.edu/SegwayEd/lessons/exploring_magnetism/exploring_magnetism/Exploring_Magnetism.pdf http://cse.ssl.berkeley.edu/SegwayEd/lessons/exploring_magnetism/magnetism_and_electromagnetism/mag_electromag.pdf

I think an exciting experiment for elementary aged students involving magnets would be creating hoover cars and having the students race them. Students can learn about the magnetic forces that attract and repel, along with aerodynamics, and the design mechanisms that go along with creating a car. You can also give supply and size requirements to incorporate mathematics.

Students always get excited when working with magnets. One student rip off a piece of one small magnet one day and ask the teacher I was aiding that day, why they become two individual magnets instead of half and half. The teacher explain it but I noticed the student was not clear about the teacher explanation. How could we explain this phenomenon to a second grader using simple words. Raciel

In my physics for elementary teachers class we did a really fun activity that involved learning about the North and South poles of a magnet. There was a pie pan filled with water then a magnet floating on a piece of styrofoam. You can have your students take another magnet and experiment with how the magnet in the pie pan moves as you move the magnet in your hand close to each end of the magnet in the pie pan. It is simple to do and really fun and engaging!

Great Ideas!

Hi Kirsten, My name is Dr. George Mehler and I am a professor of science methods at Temple University. I have created a YouTube Channel called FunScienceDemos where we have hundreds of video demonstrations on science topics that students should know before high school. Here is the link to our playlist on Electricity and Magnet demonstrations. Hopefully you find this useful and can incorporate it into your lessons! https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLat8Jejmdx1se_mWixx3Bb1bZ6fvFthgh Best, Dr. George Mehler Ed.D., Temple University

You could have the students go on a treasure hunt around around the room. They have to go around finding objects in the room that are attracted or not attracted to the magnets!

Hi, My peer showed me an activity the other day to use with magnets. You gather a few objects, some that are magnetic and some that are not. Give the students a magnet and have them run the magnet over the different items. Whatever sticks to the magnet is magnetic, what ever does not is not magnetic. It is a fun activity and the kids will think its really cool. Goodluck!

I know my friend did a lesson that placed a cupcake tray and it had non magnets and magnets objects and they had a magnet tool and they were able to experiment which would would work and she said the students were very engaged. 

I know my friend did a lesson that placed a cupcake tray and it had non magnets and magnets objects and they had a magnet tool and they were able to experiment which would would work and she said the students were very engaged. 

Awesome!!!

Hi Kristen, I did a lesson about magnets to 2nd graders. As engagement, I had them play a "fishing" game, where their fishing rods were rolled newspapers with a piece of yarn attached. At the end of the yarn, there was a magnet. I had small containers with different kinds of objects inside (magnetic and non-magnetic). They had to take out all the objects that they could without touching them. After that, I had them explore the classroom and look for magnets and had them record how they were used/what was it used for. Hope this helps!

Interesting! Would love to use these ideas in the classroom!

Magnets are our next topic, thank you everyone for all of this helpful information! 

One of my friends taught a lesson on magnets to her kindergarten class. She first started off by playing  game with the students. She paired them off and then when she said attract the students would get close together and when she said repel they would move away from each other. She also had an activity in which she placed various objects around the classroom and gave each student a magnet. The students were then instructed to explore around the classroom and find objects that attracted to their magnets and observe which ones did not.

Wow. I love that idea. I like that she included the students and movement while discussing the key vocabulary terms. During my magnet lesson I gave students 8 different objects and then they had to test them to see which items were magnetic and which items were not. Before i gave them the items I had them individually predict which items were magnetic. 

Using a cookie sheet and magnets to retell a fairy tale they have read. Using the magnets to move the characters on the cookie sheet. 

A fun magnet activity that I think is suitable for all ages is having random materials for the students to choose from such as paper, coins, paper clips, metals, fabric, etc. and have the students predict what is magnetic and what isn't. Then of course have the students test each object and see what they observe. 

I will be teaching a lesson on magnets soon with my kindergartners. One of the activities will be a magnet walk in the classroom. They will explore the classroom with their own magnet looking for things that are magnetic. They will record in their science journals what was attracted to the magnet, and what repelled the magnet. It will be a lot of fun!

I remember being in 4th grade when we did a lesson on electromagnetivity. We wrapped insulated wires around a nail and used it to make the non-magnetic nail magnetic, then used it to pick up different metals. I just remember being fascinated by the fact that without visibly interacting with the nail, the properties of the nail changed. Students might also enjoy a demonstration of ferrofluids, which could be used to show magnetic fields.

Magnets are something that you can teach in a classroom in a variety of ways. Depending on the grade you could give the students a magnet and have them go on a classroom scavenger hunt to find items that are magnetic and non-magnetic. For example a paper clip, ruler, dime, scissors, pencil, book, eraser, chair, crayons, etc.

We have done tons of exciting magnet lessons. The one that the kids love the most fall into matter, and finding out if the objects are magnetic or not.

I did a discovery lesson on magnets with a kindergarten class and they loved it. I put things in a discovery bottle and gave them a magnet and let them play, then they predicted what objects would react the same as in the beginning with the discovery bottle, then we learned about magnets and read Magnet Max, and finally they went back and got to be explorers like Magnet Max and test their predictions. They wanted to continue exploring different things around the room to see if they were magnetic or nonmagnetic.

Hi, I found these two websites that list a bunch of fun activities involving magnets! https://educators.brainpop.com/lesson-plan/magnets-activities-for-kids-2/ http://www.parents.com/blogs/toddlers-kids/2015/03/05/fun/irresistible-activities-to-do-with-magnets/ I think the one called "gone fishing" in the brainpop link is especially fun! It reminds me of this old game I had when I was younger. I think many kids would love this. Also, having kids make a "magnet paintings" explained in the second link is also a cool and creative way to use magnets.

On a much more basic level, many adults do not realize that the iron that is taken as a supplement is the same iron that is attracted to a magnet. I used an iron capsule given to me to fight anemia. I poured it out in a plastic bag and used a magnet to show the kids. That was the introduction to the cereal and magnet activity that is popular with third grade students. The idea of rocks and minerals in my cereal is a fascinating topic.

In my current classroom we had an experiment where we made a T-Chart for a lot of different items, some magnetic and some not. Then on one side we wrote down the objects names and on the other we tested them with an actual magnetic. We then had a battery and a large nail, we wrapped metal coils around the nail and made an electromagnet. The more coils the more metal paperclips it will pick up.

In my current classroom we had an experiment where we made a T-Chart for a lot of different items, some magnetic and some not. Then on one side we wrote down the objects names and on the other we tested them with an actual magnetic. We then had a battery and a large nail, we wrapped metal coils around the nail and made an electromagnet. The more coils the more metal paperclips it will pick up.

My class just is working on magnets right now. My cooperating teacher and I found some fun activities to do with our kindergarten class. However, we are so limited on recourses. Any ideas on what I can do about this?

You can give the students a magnet and items that will be attracted to the magnet and other items that won't be attracted. Then you can allow to explore and test the items so that they can discover which items are magnetic or not. There is a video clip on youtube were they have a magnet scene in a Toy Story movie, the kids will love this!

My students loved testing things around the classroom to see if they stuck to the magnet or not! We did this before explaining anything!

I would have stations that include nonmagnetic and magnetic objects and have students rotate and test objects with the magnet. This way it keeps them moving and it's all hands-on!

https://educators.brainpop.com/bp-jr-topic/magnets/ This is a wonderful website that will give you many different lessons on magnets for K-3!