Activity of the Week: Discovering Magnetism

Supplies needed:

• one magnet per student
• notebooks
• pencils

This week, head outside to the playground with magnets, paper, and pencils. Together, name all of the objects on the playground and have the students write them down. Next, have the students decide if they think the objects are magnetic or not. If they think an object is magnetic, have them write down an “M” beside the object’s name; if not, have them write “NM”. Then have them take their magnets around to the objects to test their hypotheses and record the results. Come back together as a group to discuss magnetism and what types of materials are magnetic.