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Magnet Lesson
















This was a short week. We had Monday off for MLK Day and then Friday off for a teacher professional development day (which equaled an all day meeting...sigh...really could have used the day in the classroom).

We spent three days working with magnets.

Monday - Intro to magnets. Flipchart from Promethean Planet. I embedded video clips from streamline into the presentation. Watched Brain Pop. Read LH notebook page. Students partnered up (clock partners) and tested items in the classroom with magnets and recorded their results on the RH side (last picture above).

Tuesday - We did two experiments today (first and second picture above). The first was making a temporary magnet by stroking a nail with a magnet. We were trying to determine if the number of strokes affected how many paperclips the nail could pick up. Students recorded their results on a lab sheet I made for the LH side of the notebook. After students finished that they created a floating paperclip (idea from the TOPS book Magnets - A free copy of that lesson plan can be found on their website) and passed various objects between the floating paperclip and magnet to see what would break the magnetic field (pictures four and five above).

TIP - I found students in my first class were rushing through the first experiment to get to the floating paperclip experiment. What I did after that change it so they couldn't get the materials for the floating paperclip experiment until they showed me the completed lab paperwork for the first experiment.

The RH side of the notebook I left blank. On Monday we will review magnets and then students will have a choice of assignments on that side - web, acrostic, or storyboard.

Wednesday - Watched Bill Nye (Magnetism) and played Rice Round Up (also found in the TOP book) - (third picture above)
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