Lesson 1

Coils, Coils, Coils!
Wrap a wire around practically anything and you’ve got a coil!
This lesson introduces the idea of a coil and explores electromagnets.
The kit provides magnet wire, battery band, sand paper and nail.
A compass (you can make one), extra paperclips and battery are not provided.

 You will also need
a clean flat area to do the projects: or or Coils, Coils, Coils!
Wrap a wire around practically anything
and you’ve got a -- With a coil you can make a spinning motor, a clicking telegraph,
a light flashing generator and a working radio. C O I L S!
Before you begin
building these
inventions with coils,
take some time
to revisit . . . WAIT! ELECTROMAGNETS. You have played with permanent magnets and you may have made
temporary magnets but have you ever made an electromagnet To do this you will need: battery band magnet wire 1.5V battery nail You can make a magnet
with electricity. sandpaper Wrap the rubber band
around the battery. Wrap the wire around
the bolt or nail,
at least 30 times.

The wound
wire
is called
a COIL. Leave plenty of
wire at each end. Sand each end
of the wire
with sandpaper. 1 Making an Electromagnet 2 3 LESS! Connect each end of the wire to the battery
by slipping them under the rubber band. Make a coil with half the turns (15).
Does the electromagnet
pick up more or less paperclips Count and record
the number of
paperclips
you can pick up
with the nail.
Electromagnet! 4 5 Click on PLAY button to watch video.
Congratulations! You just made a magnet
with electricity! Click here to make a compass Which end of the compass needle points to the head of the nail? Does an electromagnet have a north and south pole? NOW flip the wire
connections
to the battery.

What happens to the poles
of the electromagnet? 1 2 Test it with a compass if you have one, otherwise make one. Which end of the compass needle points to the tip of the nail? Which of these coils
makes the stronger electromagnet Which of these
electromagnets
is stronger Click for answer. Click for answer. Lower Voltage
WEAKER
Electromagnet
 More Turns
STRONGER
Electromagnet
 Fewer Turns
WEAKER
Electromagnet
 Higher Voltage
STRONGER
Electromagnet
 Test these for yourself.
 You can weaken a temporary magnet by hitting it against a table or dropping it on the floor.

You can turn off your electromagnet by pulling one of the wires
away from the battery. ON OFF Sometimes the nail
stays magnetized.
Can you guess why? Turning Electromagnets On and Off Electromagnets are used to sort scrap metal.
Electromagnets can lift huge loads of iron and steel. Detecting Magnetism in a Wire You will need: Place the wire
over the
compass. What happens to the compass needle
for each arrangement of the wire? Briefly touch the other
end of the wire to the
other battery terminal. Hold one end
of the bare
wire firmly against
one terminal
of the battery. wire compass 1 2 3 4 EXTRA: Place the wire next
to the compass and repeat 2-3.
Then try wrapping the wire
around the compass, as show. Electromagnetism How Does Electricity Create A Magnet? When electrons flow
in a wire, what happens
around the wire What instrument can you
use to detect a magnetic
field around a wire What did you use
to make a magnet
you could turn ON and OFF As you increase
the number of turns
in a coil, what happens
to the electromagnet 1 2 3 4 a magnetic field forms
around the wire a compass a battery, a wire
and a nail it gets stronger

Introduction

Lesson 1

Lesson 2

Lesson 3

Resources

Lesson 4

Lesson 5

Lesson 6

Lesson 7

Lesson 8
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