Geneva College

Beaver Falls, PA
EDU 347

Science Lesson Plan

Name: Angelia Duncan Date: 3/16/21

Subject: Science Grade Level: 4

I. Topic
Understanding the magnetic field of magnets and the earth, and exploring how a
compass interacts with the earth’s magnetic field.

II. PA or Common Core Standards

3.2.4.B4. Demonstrate that magnets have poles that repel and attract each other.

3.2.4.B7. Understand that all scientific investigations involve asking and answering
questions and comparing the answer with what is already known.

III. Lesson Objectives - Objectives must be written using observable verbs

1. After receiving visual input during a teacher demonstration, the students will be able
to use academic vocabulary to identify the interaction between magnets’ poles in
pictures they see.
2. The students will be able to state a hypothesis about the functions of magnets and
compasses.
3. The students will be able to identify academic vocabulary words when given a
picture of a situation involving magnets or a compass.

IV. Materials

For the teacher (all materials gathered before lesson)

- 2 bar magnets
- A compass
- Wax paper or cardstock paper (1 sheet the size of a sheet of paper)
- Iron filings
- Blank paper to draw on (8 sheets for all three classes)
- 2 different colored pens to draw pictures
- A globe (on the shelf near the door)
- A picture of earth

For the students

- Lap books (they have started their lapbooks the previous day)
- Lap book globe pictures
- Lap book compass papers
 - Crayons/colored pencils (in the students’ desks)
- Scissors (in the back cabinet)
- Glue sticks (in the back cabinet)

V. Lesson Development

A. Introduction (5 minutes)
I will briefly review that magnets have north and south poles (show it on the bar
magnets). Then, I will ask them if they know what else has north and south poles?
(Earth). I will grab the globe and point to the north and south poles.

B. Lesson Development (25-30 minutes)

I will use the document camera to show how the bar magnets attract when the
north and south poles are facing each other. I will say “If I put the north and south
poles together, what will happen?” (I will be looking for students to make
hypotheses here. And this will also be an assessment of their answers and use of
“attract” or “repel”. I will put the magnets together and ask the students what
happened. I will let them share their ideas and add the word “attract” if they do not
say it themselves. I will set them down under the document camera and draw two
arrows pointing toward each other and reiterate that opposite poles attract or move
toward each other. Then, I will say “Let’s try to put the North poles together. What
will happen?” (I will be looking for the students to make hypotheses here.) I will try
to put them together and ask the students what is happening. I will set them down
under the document camera and draw arrows going in opposite directions and
reiterate that two of the same poles move away from each other, or “repel” each
other.

Next, I will talk about magnetic fields. I will put wax paper over the bar magnet and
sprinkle iron filings over the wax paper to show the magnetic field. I will ask the
students what they notice about the shape of the filings. I will explain that every
magnet has a round magnetic field, which is a force that surrounds the magnet.
(imagine a force field in Black Panther to connect prior knowledge)

I will grab the globe again and connect these two aspects of magnetism back to it
and explain that Earth has a magnetic field around it (which looks like the
magnetic field around the bar magnet) because of the liquid iron that flows in the
earth’s core. I will draw on my picture of Earth the magnetic fields. I will also draw a
bar magnet with the south pole facing the geographic North Pole. I will say, “This
might look a little bit confusing to you guys because the magnet looks like its upside
down. It has to do with this compass.” Then, I will pull out my compass. I will tell
them that it uses a magnet to show direction. I will ask, “If we know that opposite
poles attract, can you tell me how this compass works? Think about it to yourself for
a minute”. After a minute, I will tell the students to tell the person next to them their
hypothesis for how a compass might work. Then, I will ask a couple of students to
share their answers. (I am assessing if students volunteer to make hypotheses here.)
I will say (or reiterate a student’s answer), “The compass has a magnet in it, which
 has a north and a south pole. Because opposite poles attract, the north pole of the
magnet in the compass will attract to the south pole of the magnetic field in the
earth. That is why the picture shows the south pole on the globe being in the
North.” As I explain, I will point the south pole of the bar magnet toward the
compass and move it around to show that the compass magnet is attracted to the
opposite pole. I will draw a compass (differentiation) next to my globe drawing to
show that the north arrow faces the south pole of the earth. I will have the students
glue their globe and compass pictures that they will be given to their lapbooks and
color them.

Have them color and glue their globe, magnetic field, and compass pictures into
their lapbooks after the lesson.

C. Evidence of Differentiated Instruction (Content, process, Products, or

Learning Environment)

Process: I will be differentiating for struggling readers, visual learners, and

possible ELs by using pictorial input during my lesson. I will be drawing
arrows next to my magnet and labelling it to show attraction or repulsion. I
will also draw a magnetic field on a globe to show the magnetic attraction
between the north and south poles of the earth. Finally, I will draw a
compass that shows how the North pole of the compass attracts to the South
pole of the globe in order to show us the direction we are going.

D. Closure (5 minutes)
I will close the lesson by asking, “When would magnets repel each other?
When would they attract?”. I will be looking for students to say that
magnets will repel when two of the same poles are put near each other and
attract when opposite poles are put near each other. (assessment here) I will
also point to the picture of the globe and ask, “What is around this globe
that we can’t see?” What were these lines representing when I drew it?” I
will want a student to tell me that it is a magnetic field around the globe.

After my closure I will instruct the students to put their lapbooks away. Then,
I will let them know what they need to take out for their next class to
transition.

VI. Assessment/Evaluation
1. During the lesson, I want the students to use the words “attract” and “repel” when
they answer questions about the interaction between magnets’ poles.
2. During the lesson, I will be asking the students to make hypotheses for how a
compass works and what will happen when magnets interact.
3. In the closure of the lesson, I will look for students to correctly identify the
vocabulary words “attract”, “repel”, and “magnetic field” when they are shown
drawings of them.
VII. Self-Evaluation
Overall, my lesson went well! The students were generally engaged with the lesson
through volunteering to answer my questions. They were able to identify the pushing
apart and pulling together of magnets as “attracting” and “repelling”. When I poured
the iron filings over the bar magnet, the students were very interested, and they noticed
several different things about the filings. One student actually knew about magnetic
fields beforehand, and he shared his knowledge when I asked the students to share
what they noticed about the filings. At first, I didn’t think it was ideal to have a student
share the very thing I was going to share about magnetic fields. I realized that it was
actually beneficial because the other students were able to learn from him and receive
the information from someone their own age. Also, I was able to go into further detail
about or rephrase what he shared with the class to take the instruction further. I did
have to slow down for two of my three classes because they are on a lower level
developmentally. For these classes, I explained everything more than once and brought
the compass and the magnet closer to them to explain how a compass works. My
teaching portion of the lesson went pretty quickly, but I think that was beneficial
because the students had more time to color and glue the pictures into their lapbooks.
As it turns out, some of my students do not have great attention and listening skills, so I
had to explain and re-explain how to glue the pictures into the lapbooks. While the
students glued their pictures into their lapbooks, I used the quiet time to review the
concepts I taught during my lesson. For many students, this review time was when
things clicked in the students’ minds. Many other students were curious and began
asking questions about magnetism during this time. The topic of the compass was a little
bit confusing for some students, but as I went around and showed them the interaction
between the compass and the magnet, I think they were able to understand how the
compass works with the earth’s magnet. Also, I think it was helpful for me to draw the
lines of the magnetic field and label it because it helped students to understand what
the magnetic field was instead of trying to imagine something that no one can see. I
would definitely use this method of pictorial input again in future lessons.