First Grade:

Magnets Unit
Magnet Madness – Which Magnet is Strongest?

Teacher: Amanda Rushlow Date Submitted: March 17th, 2018

Overall Lesson Topic/Title: Magnet Madness – Which Magnet is Strongest? & Share-Out

NGSS Performance Expectation for this lesson: 3-PS2-3: Ask questions to determine cause
and effect relationships of electric or magnetic interactions between two objects not in contact
with each other. [Clarification Statement: Examples of an electric force could include the force
on hair from an electrically charged balloon and the electrical forces between a charged rod
and pieces of paper; examples of a magnetic force could include the force between two
permanent magnets, the force between an electromagnet and steel paperclips, and the force
exerted by one magnet versus the force exerted by two magnets. Examples of cause and effect
relationships could include how the distance between objects affects strength of the force and
how the orientation of magnets affects the direction of the magnetic force.]
*First grade teacher intern using third grade NGSS standard for magnets because district uses
GLCEs for science curriculum.

Rationale: This activity facilitates students in learning disciplinary core ideas that objects do
not have to be in contact for there to be magnetic forces between them and that sizes of forces
depend on properties of objects and distances apart. Engaging first grade students in this
activity provides them with the opportunity to apply scientific explanations of magnetic and
non-magnetic materials in a similar context of the strongest magnet. Students can answer
questions about new experiences of predicting and testing which magnet is the strongest,
involving similar patterns and explanations to magnetic and non-magnetic materials.
Additionally, students have the opportunity to express their ideas and explanations for why they
believed a certain magnet to be the strongest and support it with evidence.

Materials & Supplies Needed:

Per pair/group: three magnets, paperclip
Per student: pencil, worksheet

Procedures and approximate time allocated for each event How is this lesson differentiated
based on information gained from
formative assessments given in
Introduction to the lesson (5 minutes) previous lessons?
• Review vocabulary terms and definitions: attract, repel, push, and pull.
• Review what happens when two similar poles are facing each other, and
what happens when two opposite poles are facing each other.
• Remember from our Gone Fishing activity, that the magnets did not seem
to be very strong? Magnets were weak during Gone
Fishing activity, and I will be drawing
• Today, I am challenging you to determine which magnet is the strongest
on this experience to motivate students
among three different ones.
to compare, test, and determine which
magnet is the strongest.

Outline of activities during the lesson (25 minutes)

• You will be working with one or two partners to first predict which magnet
of three that you think is the strongest, and then prove which one is the
strongest.
• Model below steps with two other students under document camera.
 o You will receive a worksheet, three magnets, and a paperclip to
share with your partner(s).
o You will draw a picture of which magnet you predict to be the
strongest. It will be explicitly clear that one
o You will place all three magnets on the magnet lines. partner only moves one magnet to
o You will then place your paperclip on the paperclip line. ensure equitable participation amongst
o One partner will touch and move one magnet, then the other group members. This clear direction will
partner will touch and move the next magnet, and the third be made due to how students shared, or
partner will touch and move the third magnet. did not share during Gone Fishing
o You will use one magnet at a time and move it closer to the science lesson.
paperclip.
o After you get so close, the paperclip will jump to the magnet.
o You will keep the magnet where it is, and draw a line on the
paper where the magnet made the paperclip jump to it.
o You will do this for each magnet.
o Whichever magnet made the paperclip jump the closest to the
paperclip line will be your strongest magnet.
o That furthest line that made the magnet jump is your proof for
which magnet is the strongest.
• Call on a student to recite directions.
• Process is repeated for each magnet and data is recorded on worksheet.
• Students will put materials in the center of the tables.
o Table captains will collect and return materials to kidney table.
• After students have determined which magnet they believe to be is the
strongest, groups will share out and argue with their evidence.
Class comes back to whole group setting
to review the results from the
Closure for the lesson (10 minutes) exploration. This should fill in any gaps
• Students come back to whole class setting. (5 minutes) for any pairs that may have not had time
to finish.
o Each group will hold up which magnet they proved to be the
strongest.
o How did you prove your magnet to be the strongest?
§ Two or three groups will share out their strongest
magnet and how they proved its strength.
• Did the magnet push or pull the paperclip?
• Did the magnet attract or repel the
paperclip?
• Students will do a quick draw of their predicted and determined strongest
magnet on the back of their worksheets, then think-pair-share with partners
about if their prediction was correct or incorrect as an exit ticket. (5
minutes)

Formative assessment (5 minutes) Differentiation during assessment

Students will do a quick draw of their predicted and determined strongest magnet on
the back of their worksheets, then think-pair-share with partners about if their Students are able to draw pictures of
prediction was correct or incorrect as an exit ticket. their predicted and determined magnets.
They are able to verbally explain to
Additionally, on the worksheet (attached below) I will be looking for if students have their partners if their predictions were
marked where the magnet caused the paperclip to jump to it. This will help me correct or incorrect. Advanced students
determine if students understood that this portion was their evidence for figuring out may write their explanations in addition
the relative strength of each magnet. to orally presenting it.

This assessment will allow me to assess whether or not students made predictions
and completed the activity by determining which magnet was the strongest with
evidence.