Magnets and Engineering Design

Grade 3 Science Worksheet - Challenge Me

Circle the answer.

1. 1.

   A class must design a gate latch that stays shut in wind but opens with a gentle pull. Which design fits best?

   • a heavy rock in front of the gate
   • strong glue on the gate
   • two magnets with opposite poles facing, on the gate and the post
   • two magnets with like poles facing
2. 2.

   A sorting tool must lift at least 8 paper clips at once. Use the graph. Which magnets could be used?

   • A, B and C
   • A only
   • B and C
   • A and C
3. 3.

   A recycling plant has steel and aluminum cans mixed. After a magnet lifts out the steel cans, what is left on the belt?

   • the aluminum cans
   • steel and aluminum cans
   • no cans at all
   • only steel cans
4. 4.

   A magnet holds a sign through a door 1 cm thick but falls off a door 4 cm thick. What should the engineers try next?

   • the same magnet with thicker wood
   • a smaller magnet
   • a stronger magnet or a thinner door
   • two magnets with like poles facing
5. 5.

   A student says magnetic force can pass through materials. Which test supports this?

   • a magnet sticks to a steel desk
   • a magnet moves a clip through a sheet of cardboard
   • a magnet picks up a nail it touches
   • two magnets push apart
6. 6.

   Two magnets push apart. A student flips one magnet, and now they pull together. What does this show?

   • magnets only pull, never push
   • flipping makes a magnet stronger
   • which poles face each other decides push or pull
   • the magnet lost its pull
7. 7.

   A balloon rubbed on wool bends a thin stream of water without touching it. Which other force also acts without touching?

   • friction
   • a push from a hand
   • the pull of a rope
   • magnetism
8. 8.

   A bag of iron nails and wooden beads spilled together. Which plan separates them fastest?

   • blow on the pile to move the nails
   • shake the pile in water
   • sweep a magnet over the pile to lift the nails
   • pick out each bead by hand
9. 9.

   A magnet latch on a cabinet is so strong that children cannot open it. Which change would help?

   • make the door heavier
   • use a weaker magnet or add a thin spacer
   • use two stronger magnets
   • turn the magnets so like poles face
10. 10.

    Which test result shows that distance changes magnetic force?

    • a clip sticks to two different magnets
    • a clip moves the same at 1 cm and at 6 cm
    • a clip jumps to the magnet at 1 cm but not at 6 cm
    • a magnet sticks to a steel door