Summary:

-All magnets have a North and South Pole, even when you cut a bar magnet on say the north side that piece will still have a north and south pole.
-Magnets will push each other away (as modeled by floating magnets) when a north pole meets another north pole or south to south pole.
-Magnets will attract each other when they are opposites like north and south or south and north pole.

Learning Goals / Objectives:

1. e. Students know electrically charged objects attract or repel each other.
1. f. Students know that magnets have two poles (north and south) and that like poles repel each other while unlike poles attract each other.

Background

How do magnets float? Why do some magnets repel (push away) from each other? Why are magnets attracted (concept of attraction) to each other?

Setup:

Students are group in teams of 4 making sure to place desks together to form one large group or table top in a regular classroom. Its best if materials are distributed by teacher or student team leader.

Anticipatory Set:

Ask the class if they know why magnets attract or stick together and have them write one sentence describing why.
Next ask the class if they know why magnets repel or push away from one another and have them write one sentence describing why.
Pass Floating doughnut magnets and bar magnets label north and south pole.

Instructions / Activities:

-Introduce the group to magnets and explain how to handle them with care because you could pinch your skin in between the magnets.
-Demonstrate the “floating magnets.”
-Introduce the bar magnets.
-Explain that all magnets have north and south pole.
-Allow children to explore with magnets for 5-10 minutes on their own, they may not get up out of seat.
-Walk around and listen to comments about what tricks they can do. Very exciting time.
-Explain how they can discover the north side and south side of a doughnut magnet using the label bar magnet.
-The north pole side of the bar magnet will be attracted and stick to the south side of the doughnut magnet.
-The north pole side of the bar magnet will be repelled (pushed away) by the north pole side of the doughnut magnet.
-Allow time for students to discover the north and south pole side of the doughnut magnets are attracted (stick together) to each other.

Assessment:

Formative Assessment:
Teammates or partners are asked to share with one another their observations
The students draw a representation of the concepts repel and attraction
Formative Assessment:
Vocabulary Test
Multiple choice
Drawing/creating another food chain in science journal
Writing a paragraph describing the food chain created in activity

Wrap-up / Closure:

Students can draw picture of floating magnets in their science journals and write one sentence demonstrating their understanding.

Attachments: https://ccsplibrary.com/wp-content/uploads/gravity_forms/1-98399c595b52310e23a081ee652e5a53/2013/06/photo-4-18.JPG