Learning Goals:

1. Relate that electric current creates a magnetic field.
2. Describe how electromagnets are made.
3. Investigate ways to change the strength of an electromagnet.
4. Describe the differences between series and parallel circuits.
5. List several items that engineers have designed using electromagnets.

Handouts

• Electromagnet Lab Worksheet

Group Supplies (up to 25 per group)

• Cardboard toilet paper tube (one per team of two)
• Refrigerator magnets (at least 2 per person)
• 4 Feet of 22 AWG magnet wire
• 5” x 5” cardboard
• Masking tape
• 2 D-Cell battery
• Wide rubber band
• 2 – 9-Volt batteries
• Paperclips (about a handful per team)
• Small button trail compass
• Multimeter / voltmeter
• Small section/piece of 80 grit sandpaper
• 4 Wire test leads with alligator clips
• Common bright nail 16D (3-1/2” long)
• 12 feet of 22 AWG magnet wire
• Paper clips (about a handful per team)
• Wide rubber band

Important Links

• Lesson Plan

Next Generation Science Standards

3-5 Engineering Design

• 3-5-ETS1-1: Define a simple design problem reflecting a need or a want that includes specified crietria for success and constraints on materials, time, or costs.
• 3-5-ETS1-2: Generate and compare multiple possible solutions to a problem based on how well each is likely to meet the criteria and constraints on materials, time, or cost.
• 3-5-ETS1-3: Plan and carry out fair tests in which variables are controlled and failure points are considered to identify aspects of a model or prototype that can be improved.

M.S. Engineering Design

• MS-ETS1-1: Define the criteria and constraints of a design problem with sufficient precision to ensure a successful solution, taking into account relevant scientific principles and potential impacts on people and the natural environment that may limit possible solutions.
• MS-ETS1-2: Evaluate competing design solutions using a systematic process to determine how well they meet the criteria and constraints of the problem.
• MS-ETS1-3: Analyze data from tests to determine similarities and differences among several design solutions to identify the best characteristics of each that can be combined into a new solution to better meet the criteria for success.
• MS-ETS1-4: Develop a model to generate data for iterative testing and modification of a proposed object, tool, or process such that an optimal design can be achieved.

H.S. Engineering Design

• HS-ETS1-1: Analyze a major global challenge to specify qualitative and quantitative criteria and constraints for solutions that account for societal needs and wants.
• HS-ETS1-2: Design a solution to a complex real-world problem by breaking it down into smaller, more manageable problems that can be solved through engineering.
• HS-ETS1-3: Evaluate a solution to a complex real-world problem based on prioritized criteria and trade-offs that account for a range of constraints, including cost, safety, reliability, and aesthetics, as well as possible social, cultural, and environmental impacts.