Lesson Plan

3. Know everyday uses of magnets

01_05_01

Learning Outcomes

To know how magnets work and materials which can be magnetised

Higher: Is able to conduct a test on different materials to see if they are attracted to magnets
Middle: Can identify materials that can be attracted to magnets
Lower: Is able to find out about the history of magnets

Activities

Lesson Starter - Engage

Method:

Lesson Recap Starter: Think back to the last lesson. What does the word property mean?

Lesson Starter: Watch the clip of the magnets being attracted to one another.  
Can children identify some places in the home or in school where magnets are used?

Resources:

Presentation - Starter Slide.

The Story - Explore and Explain

Method:

Run through the presentation on magnets, magnetism and where we may find magnets being used.

Watch the Challenge Film. What objects can children identify and what materials are they made from? Can they guess which object might use a magnet in some way?

Stop the presentation at the relevant slides: Talk Partners; AfLs; Songs.

Take part in the Choral Response Questions activity (see Assessment section) after the Keywords/Rocket Words slide.

Key Concept:

During this unit, each lesson contains a key concept question housed in the '30 Second Challenge' slide. To help children master this content so the knowledge moves from their short term memory to their long term memory, at the beginning of the follow on lesson the question from the previous lesson is revisited. 

The questions covered during this unit include:

1. Describe cotton. Describe wood. Describe cotton. Describe metal.

2. What does the word property mean?

3. How can a magnet be used?

4. What metals does material need to contain for a magnet to attract it?

5. What two actions can a magnet create on another material which contains iron?

6. What is the difference between natural and man-made materials?

Resources:

Presentation
Challenge Film

Lesson Expert - Explain

Method:

Expert Film: Alex from Image Display explains how magnets are really important in making the displays he makes look so striking.

How we deliver the Gatsby Benchmarks:

2 - Learning from career and labour market information:  Pop along to Developing Experts career’s zone to find out about jobs in your area.

4 - Linking curriculum learning to careers: This unit showcases careers in the people who work with materials. Access our 360° virtual work tours.

7 - Encounters with Further and Higher Education: Pop along to Developing Experts career’s zone to find out about training providers in your area.

Resources:

Presentation - Expert Film.

Lesson Assignment - Elaborate

Method:

Magnets in Objects

The lesson assignment video shows several examples of magnets being used.

The children must identify how the magnets are being used.

  • The video contains
  • magnetic board games
  • optical case (glasses)
  • magnetic drawing board
  • fridge door
  • fridge magnet

You can then explain that magnets are found in objects that contain an electric motor, make sounds (speaker) or record sounds.

Encourage them to find objects around the room that might fit that description.

Then get them to complete the Handout.

Resources:

Magnets in Objects
Objects that contains magnets (optional)
Video
Handout

Lesson Log - Evaluate

Method:

When all groups have completed their task, a representative from each group will state their predictions and their findings and the similarities of the items that they were able to pick up with the magnet.

Have a group discussion about the results, and why they think there predictions were correct or incorrect.

Quiz

With their talk partners, the children are to go through the quiz at the end of the presentation and answer the questions.

Resources:

Quiz in presentation

Assessment

Questions to Ask During the Lesson

Are children able to recognise material which are made from wood, metal and plastic?
Are children able to identify materials which are magnetic or non-magnetic?
What words are children using to describe the materials and their properties?

Mark Allocation

Quizzes available in pupil zone.

Unit knowledge organisers and tests available in unit / lesson documents area.

Choral Response Questions/ Phrase Suggestions

Magnets can pick up...(metal)
Magnets are useful because...
Some materials are more (magnetic) than others, such as...
You can test if a material is magnetised by...

Teacher Mastery

The Science Behind the Science
Magnetism is created by the motion of electrical atoms. When all of the electrons in an element spin in the same direction, they have the potential to become magnetic. They can only become magnetic, however, when they enter the magnetic field of another magnet, so an existing magnet is needed to create a new magnet. 

Iron is magnetic, therefore any alloy, such as steel which contains iron, is also magnetic. Other metals which are magnetic are nickel, cobalt, and a few rare earth metals. 

Some animals can sense magnetism and use it to navigate around the world.

Fun fact: Farmers feed cows "cow magnets" to collect pieces of scrap metal that the cow may have swallowed by accident. 

Curriculum Fields

National Curriculum

To identify and name a variety of everyday materials, including wood, plastic, glass, metal, water, and rock.

Curriculum Of Excellence

Planet Earth - Energy sources and sustainability - I am aware of different types of energy around me and can show their importance to everyday life and my survival. SCN 1-04a Forces, electricity and waves - Forces - By exploring the forces exerted by magnets on other magnets and magnetic materials, I can contribute to the design of a game. SCN 1-08a

International Baccalaureate

Forces and Energy: the study of energy, its origin, storage and transfer and the work it can do; the study of forces; the application of scientific understanding through inventions and machines.

Enquiry Skills and Approaches

Grouping and classifying.

Working Scientifically Skills

Identifying and classifying.

CrossCurriculum Opportunities

Cross Curricular Link for Mathematics: Measurement: Ask pupils to describe the mass/weight [for example, heavy/light, heavier than, lighter than] of the different objects they are exploring.

CBSE

Grade 2 - Force, Work and Energy

Chinese Compulsory Education Primary School Science

List the magnets of different shapes commonly used in life Observation describes the basic characteristics of common objects, identifying common materials in life, knowing common forces. Chinese - Science Inquiry - Make assumptions: Under the guidance of the teacher & can make simple guesses based on existing experience & questions.