Students learn that magnetism is a force that can act over a distance and that the area over which this force acts is known as the magnet's magnetic field. Using iron filings, students observe where the magnetic fields of different types of magnets are located and how these fields change when magnets attract and repel other magnets.

Student Resources

• 4.1 Vocabulary
• 4.2 Patterns of Force
• 4.3 Patterns of Attraction and Repulsion
• 4.4 Section 4 Assessment

Learn by Reading

For additional content-area reading, check out the Houghton Mifflin Science eBook: Grade 4, Unit F, page 63.