ScienceGrade 3ages 8–9
🧲 A magnet pulls metal
A magnet feels like it should be sticky and grab anything nearby, but it only pulls certain metals like iron — wood, paper, and plastic aren't affected at all, no matter how strong the magnet is.
Try this lesson freeNo card needed. The first lesson is free.
Download on the App StoreWhat your child learns
- A magnet pulls some metals, like iron.
- Wood, paper, and plastic are not pulled.
- It is not glue. There is no jam here.
- Not every metal is pulled equally.
The mistake most kids make here
A magnet pulls everything, even wood, because it is sticky.
Try one question
A magnet pulls…
Pulls
- wood
- some metals like iron
- everything
Answer
some metals like iron — That's it. Iron yes. Wood no.
How Maya teaches it
Your child tells Maya what they did in class. She teaches this topic at her desk, asks questions with tappable answers, and when the answer is wrong she explains why that answer was tempting instead of saying “try again”. She remembers what did not land and comes back to it.
Your child has it when they can: Say what a magnet pulls and what it does not.
How to help at home
'Sticky' is the closest word a child has for something that grabs objects, so magnets get grouped with glue and tape in their mind. The fix is testing several materials, not just explaining the rule.
Tonight, gather a small pile of household items — a metal spoon, a wooden block, a coin, a piece of paper, a plastic toy — and test each one with a magnet. Let your child predict before testing each item.
If your child is surprised a magnet doesn't pull a wooden spoon, ask 'is a magnet sticky like tape, or does it only pull certain things?' The test results themselves make the point better than a correction would.
A good sign they've got it: they can predict, before testing, that a magnet will pull a paperclip but not a plastic ruler, and explain why using 'metal' rather than 'sticky.'
Questions parents ask
- Why does my child think magnets pull everything?
- Because 'sticky' is the easiest word for something that grabs objects, magnets get lumped in with glue in a child's mind. Testing wood, paper, and metal side by side shows the pull is selective, not universal stickiness.
- What kinds of things do magnets actually pull?
- Magnets pull certain metals, especially iron and steel — most other metals, like aluminum or copper, and non-metal materials like wood, paper, and plastic, are not pulled at all.
- Do all metals get pulled by a magnet the same amount?
- No — some metals like iron are strongly attracted, while others aren't pulled at all, so 'it's metal' isn't quite enough on its own to predict what a magnet will grab.
- How does Maya teach this differently from a worksheet?
- Maya asks what a magnet pulls and offers real options like wood and metal, so a child who assumes 'everything' has to reconsider against a specific choice rather than a general statement.
No card needed. The first lesson is free.
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Sources: Next Generation Science Standards