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If a magnet sticks to a material, then that material is magnetic. This material will also be a metal. There are three magnetic metals:

• iron
• nickel
• cobalt

Materials like plastic, cotton and stone are not magnetic because magnets don't stick to them.

Watch this video about the metals that magnets are attracted to. Have a think about which objects should be made from magnetic metals and which objects should not.

Most other metals are not magnetic.

Copper pipes that carry water around your house and aluminium foil in your kitchen are not attracted to magnets. Another two metals which aren't magnetic are gold and silver.

Magnets can be useful. We use them to keep fridge doors closed, for example. But we wouldn't want all metals to be magnetic - our knives and forks would stick together when we eat!

With a magnet, walk around your house, garden, local park or school at breaktime and see which materials are magnetic and which ones aren’t.

If you don’t have a magnet, you can do the same thing but try to use what you have learned here to identify which materials you think might be magnetic.

Note down your findings on paper.