15 minutes or less

Unleashing the power of attraction!

Build an electromagnet and experiment with what it can pick up! Can it pick up a paper clip? Coins? Let’s find out!

Learning and Leadership
Green wire wrapped around a nail, an adult's hands holding the bare ends of the wire against each end of a battery, and a child's hand holding a paperclip up to the end of the nail.

How to Prepare:

Collect the following items before you begin:

  • 1 "D" battery (to work properly, use a new battery)
  • At least 3 feet of thinly coated copper wire
  • A large iron nail (at least 3” long)
  • A variety of small, lightweight magnetic objects (paper clips work really well)
  • Electrical tape
  • Wire cutters

Create Your Electromagnet!

Step 1: Start with your nail and your copper wire. Find the middle point of the copper wire and wrap it around the nail as many times as you can without overlapping the wires.

💡Activity Hack! You are going to need at least 8” of wire left over on each end of the nail. If your piece of wire is too long, simply cut it shorter.

Step 2: Carefully remove approximately 1” of the thin plastic coating from each end of the wire. Place an end of the wire on one end of the battery and secure it in place with clear tape. Then attach the other end of the wire to the opposite end of the battery and use the tape to secure it in place as well.  

🦺 Safety Note! Once both wire ends are attached in place, the wire and battery will get hot. So, please be careful!

Step 3: Guess what? You’ve just built your very own electromagnet! Simply by pointing the tip of the nail near a few lightweight items like paper clips or coins you should be able to watch them connect, and then you can pick them up! 

Step 4: Experiment with some other items to see what else your electromagnet will or will not pick up.

🦺 Safety Note! When you are finished experimenting, make sure to disconnect the wires because the battery will still be very warm!

Electromagnet Complete! Congratulations! 

How It Works

You know how magnets can attract certain things, like metal? Well, electromagnets take that to a whole new level by adding a bit of electricity!

An electromagnet is like a supercharged magnet that only works when we give it some electricity. It's not a regular magnet–it becomes magical when we switch on the power!

This activity is inspired by: 

https://www.weknowstuff.us.com/2015/10/project-battery-magnet.html