Science for kids – How do magnets work?

A magnet is a piece of metal or rock that is able to push (repel) or pull (attract) other metals. The force that causes this push and pull movement is called magnetism. Similar to electricity and gravity, magnetism is an important (and invisible) natural force. One of the many neat things about magnetism is that it works over distance, meaning a magnet does not have to be touching a metal object to actually move it.



Although magnets are very clever, they can’t move every material we find around the house. They are not able to pull things like paper, glass or fabric. They can only move things made of iron or that contain iron, nickel and cobalt. So if you were to try and attach a magnet to something plastic or to your clothing, it’s just not going to work!



One pole or side of the magnet is called the NORTH pole and the other side of the magnet is called the SOUTH pole.



The majority of the magnets that we use are man made. There are however some naturally occurring magnetic rocks called Lodestone that can be found on the Earth’s surface. Lodestone are chunks of special rock known as magnetite that have been exposed to a strong magnetic field from a bolt of lightning that has struck the earth. Lodestone has been found in the USA, Canada, Mexico, Italy, Finland, Austria, Romania and India.

Your CONNETIX Magnets

If you look at your CONNETIX, the magnets are the small black rectangles located around the edge of the tiles. While the magnets that are safely tucked away within the layers of your tiles are small rectangles, magnets can actually be made in all sorts of shapes and sizes. I am sure that you have other magnets in your house – maybe on your fridge or a noticeboard, holding all your important messages and reminders.



Magnets are pretty cool things and are really useful in our everyday lives. Magnets are used to make sure the doors on our microwaves, refrigerators and freezers seal tightly. They also power the speakers in stereos, earphones and televisions. Magnets are also used to store data in computers and are important in scanning machines called MRIs that doctors use to look inside people’s bodies. Did you know that over 80% of refrigerators around the world are decorated with magnets. Is your artwork held in place and displayed on your fridge using a magnet?

History of Magnets

Magnets have been used by humans for hundreds of years. It is thought that the Ancient Greek people first discovered magnets. An encyclopaedia published in 77CE (a VERY long time ago) cites that a shepherd named Magnes was herding his flock on Mount Ida and noticed that the nails in his shoes clung to the rock on the mountain – this rock was later called magnetite ore. Later on, Vikings used magnets to make the compasses that allowed them to navigate across water and conquer new lands. To this day, every ship sailing the oceans uses a compass to help sailors determine direction. Each of these compasses is driven by a magnet!!

How do the magnets in CONNETIX work?