Magnets
Main Focus: What do I know about Magnets?
It is always useful to see what your children know or perceive to know about magnets.
In this activity they might:
- Draw a toy or object that is magnetic.
- Draw a magnet with metal stuck to it.
- Draw a picture of what a magnet looks like.
- Draw a magnetic character.
- Write a simple explanation in their own words, ‘magnets pull things close to them.’ ‘Magnets attract metal objects.’ ‘Magnets keep things together.’ ‘My coat buttons are magnetic.’ ‘The fridge door is magnetic.’ etc.
Main Focus: Let's go fishing
This is a fun STEM activity that involves your class designing/creating their own animals for a magnetic game.
Your class will follow the instructions and complete the game. When the children are finished, they can also make ‘sea’ using a cardboard box and blue paint to make the game come to life.
Place different numbers on the underside of the animals and children can try to make totals/number bonds/amounts etc.
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Main Focus: Instructions - Fishing Game
In this activity linked to the topic magnetics for kids aged 5-7, your class will reflect on how they created their ‘Let’s go fishing’ game but either writing or sequencing instructions.
This resource also encourages your class to add time connective to the instructions should you wish to add the Literacy / English element to it.
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Main Focus: Is it magnetic?
In this resource linked to magnets, your KS1 class will look at the item and decide whether or not they are magnetic and then test them. Your class can also add more items to the list.
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Main Focus: Magnetic or not?
This STEM activity builds on from the resource above or can be used instead to challenge your class further.
Your class (aged 5-7) will be challenged to decide which objects are magnetic, draw one of their own objects and then give a simple explanation as to why the object is either magnetic or not.
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Main Focus: Strong Magnets Experiment
In this STEM / Science experiment focusing on magnets, your class will need two different magnets and metal paperclips.
Your class will explore how many paperclips their magnets can hold (end-to-end), compare that result to their partners and draw their experiment, recording their findings.
Your KS1 class will then watch the experiment through a video clip and write explanations as to what is happening in each step.
The kids will then recognise that when the magnet is removed, the paperclips will stay together because they are magnetised.
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