Handouts
Place handouts in the E = mc2 display area or near
related books. Distribute handouts to book groups before they read
about related topics. For book suggestions, see handouts and
resource lists. Use the questions at the end of handouts as
discussion starters.
Magnet Maze
Use magnets to move paper clips and learn about invisible magnetic
force.
Ages: 3-7
Time: 10-15 minutes
Group Size: 1-10 children
Materials (per child): 1 bar magnet; about 12 small metal
paper clips;
Magnet Maze
activity sheet taped onto a piece of poster board; pencil or crayon
Get Ready
Photocopy the
Magnet Maze
activity sheet and tape onto pieces of poster board. Obtain bar
magnets from a science supply store such as Nasco (www.enasco.com, 12 small bar magnets for $2.70, item #SB16503M) or Carolina (www.carolina.com, 10 large bar magnets for $12.50, item #95-5033).
Run the Activity
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Introduce how magnets work by putting a paper clip on the floor
or a low table. Ask: Who can lift up this paper clip? (A
child will pick up the paper clip.)
Now, can you lift the paper clip without touching it? What if
I give you a magnet?
(Child will use magnet to pick up the clip.)
So the magnet does something that moves the paper clip, even
though we can't see what that is. Let's find out how strong
this magnet's force is.
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Distribute materials to each child.
Can your magnet pick up two clips in a chain like this?
Demonstrate by picking up one paper clip with the magnet, then
touching that clip to a second clip (don't link clips).
How many paper clips do you think your magnet could pick up?
Make a guess and then try it.
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Explain that a magnet's force can even work through something
else, like a piece of poster board. Hold the poster board at a
slight angle, and then move a paper clip on top of the poster
board by holding a bar magnet underneath it.
Now explore your maze.
Without touching the paper clip, can you move it through the
maze?
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Encourage children to put the paper clip on top of other
materials (such as a book, a glass jar, a table top). Does the
magnet work through these materials?
What's Happening
Magnets are surrounded by a magnetic field, which generates a
force that pulls on things that are made of certain kinds of metal
(like paper clips). The magnetic field around the magnet can cause
certain other objects, such as paper clips, to become temporarily
magnetized and stick to the magnet. The stronger a magnet is, the
greater distance it can act across, and through a thicker material,
such as the poster board.
E = mc2 Puzzle
Solve a crossword puzzle using questions related to Einstein and his
ideas.
Ages: 8-13
Time: 15-20 minutes
Group Size: 1-10 participants
Materials (per person):
E = mc2 Puzzle
activity sheet; pencil
Run the Activity
Distribute photocopies of the
E = mc2 Puzzle
activity sheet and invite players to work alone or in pairs. Explain
that players will complete a crossword puzzle by answering questions
related to Einstein and his ideas. They can use the jumbled word
bank for extra hints. Then they solve a riddle by arranging the
circled letters of the completed crossword.
Putting the Pieces Together
Work as a group to solve a puzzle and learn about the scientific
process.
Ages: 10-14
Time: 15-20 minutes
Group Size: 6-10 participants
Materials (per group): 1 set clue slips (see Get Ready);
Putting the Pieces Together
activity sheets; pencils; scrap paper; table
Get Ready
Make clue slips by copying the clues at right onto index cards (one
per child). Place clues in an envelope. Photocopy the
Putting the Pieces Together
activity sheet.
Run the Activity
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Have each player pick a clue from the envelope. If there are
fewer players than clues, go around again. If there are more
players than clues, pair up extra players with those holding
clues.
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To get started, ask:
What kinds of things are on your clues? (part of a name
and part of a phrase)
What do you think might be the problem you need to solve?
(to figure out how the words go together)
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Participants first need to determine that the scientists' names
will help them pair up. Although some names may be unfamiliar,
logic and elimination will help players form the correct pairs.
Once correctly matched, give each pair a pencil and scrap paper
so they can write down what their clue slips form (some need to
be unscrambled). Then have the whole group decide what the lines
together form. They can rearrange the lines by moving the sheets
of paper on a table. If they get stuck, ask each pair to read
aloud their line, or suggest they look for punctuation or
rhyming words.
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Once the puzzle is solved, hand out the activity sheet with the
complete limerick. Talk about the problem-solving process by
asking:
How many people did it take to solve this puzzle? (many
or all of them) How is this like the way scientists work?
(Scientists collaborate and rely on findings of others to help
make sense of their own work, find answers, and inspire new
questions.) Even Einstein did not figure out everything behind
E = mc2 himself. He relied on centuries of
questions, ideas, experiments, and debates that occurred before
and while he was working. The names of the scientists on the
clue slips are just some of the men and women whose work helped
Einstein come up with his ideas.
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Big Ideas (Handouts)
E = mc2
has a human story. Science is influenced by society.
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Big Idea (Magnet Maze)
Science is a
process of inquiry.
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Running Activities
Try an activity yourself before doing it with a
group. You will know what to expect and can modify
materials or instructions based on your setting.
Share your enthusiasm for the topic—it will
be contagious!
Photocopy the activity sheets onto colored paper
for extra appeal.
Make extra copies of activity sheets for
participants to take home.
Establish a signal—such as ringing a
bell—that tells everyone to stop and listen to
you.
Do not hand out materials
until you are ready for participants to use them.
Connect the activity to science. At the end of an
activity, ask:
What do you know now that you didn't know before you
did this activity? What new questions do you have?
Point out that scientists, like Einstein, work in this
way: Observations lead to questions, and investigating
those questions leads to new ideas and new questions.
Encourage participants to continue investigating at
home.
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Big Ideas (E = mc2
Puzzle)
Science is a process of inquiry. The
legacy of E = mc2 continues.
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Big Ideas (Putting the Pieces Together)
Science
is a process of synthesis. Science is influenced by
society.
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Clue Slips
Albert
"Energy mass the
Einstein
and are same.
Marie
it...E = mc2!"
Curie
I'll call
Galileo
he wasn't scared:
Galilei
And to reject Isaac Newton
Isaac
need just I
Newton
name; catchy a
Antoine-Laurente
Albert shrugged when
Lavoisier
his teachers glared,
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