Complete Electromagnetism Worksheet VERY EASY (BUSH)

ElectromagnetismYou’ll need:
• A 16-penny iron nail
• 48 inches of insulated 20-gauge wire (I used doorbell wire)
• 2 D-cell batteries
• Tape to hold the wire connections together
• Some straight pins or staples
Directions: [NOTE – disconnect your electromagnet when not in use]
1. Strip about 1” of insulation off each end of the wire.
2. Starting about 6” from the one end of the wire, wrap the wire in a
coil around the nail, near the tip, with about 10 turns.
3. Attach one end of the wire to the negative (-) end of one battery. Use tape to hold it in
place. Try to pick up some pins. How many did it hold? ___
4. Attach or hold the other end of the wire to the positive end
(+) of the battery. Wait a few seconds, and then see how
many pins you can pick up in total. ___
5. How many pins did your electromagnet hold? ___ Can you
hang pins on both ends of the nail? _____
6. Now, unhook one of the wires from the battery. Will your
electromagnet pick up a pin now? _____
What do you need flowing through the wire to make the nail
act like a magnet? ______________
7. Increase the number of turns of wire on the nail to 20 by wrapping more of the nail.
Connect the wire. How many pins can your electromagnet hold now? _____
8. Tape the two batteries together, positive end of one to negative
end of the other. What does this do to the voltage? ________
What does it do to the current? _______
9. How many paperclips will your electromagnet pick up now?
_____ How is the strength of the electromagnet affected by the
increase in electricity traveling through the wire?
_______________
10. After using the electromagnet, remove the nail from the wire coil. Can the nail still pick
things up? How many paper clips or pins or staples can it pick up? _____
11. Drop the nail on the floor 3 times. How does this affect whether or not you can pick up
any paper clips or staples? _____ How many paper clips or staples can the nail pick up
after being dropped? _____