Page 106 - Big Ideas Year 10 sciPAD 2025

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106 SCIPAD - BIG IDEAS - BOOK 2
CIRCUITS AND MAGNETS
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What is a Magnet?
Materials that can be magnetised and materials that are attracted to a magnet are called
ferromagnetic. These include iron, nickel and cobalt. Steel is an alloy of iron, so it is also ferromagnetic.
All materials that have the ability to be magnetised contain regions called ‘magnetic domains’.
These are regions which have a north pole at one end and a south pole at the other. North poles
are attracted to south poles, but will repel other north poles.
1. Define the term ‘ferromagnetic’.

2. Circle four things that a magnet will pick up:
Aluminium A steel nail Paper Nickel-plated coin Cobalt
Iron wool A gold ring Hair Magnesium Silver
3. Explain why cutting a magnet in half would create two smaller magnets. 



4. Dropping a magnet on the floor is a common way for school bar magnets to lose their
magnetism. Suggest a reason why this happens. 



5. Complete the following diagrams by writing the words attracting, repelling or neither next
to each diagram.
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In non-magnetised objects magnetic domains are
arranged randomly. This causes the effect of the
north and south poles to cancel out.
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A magnetised object has its domains aligned. In a
strong magnet all the domains are aligned, while
a weaker magnet may only have the majority of its
domains aligned.
Non-magnetised Magnetised
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