NCERT Textbook: Exploring Magnets | Science Class 6 PDF Download

 Page 1


4 Chapter
Reshma lives in a coastal town of 
Kerala and is very fond of writing 
short stories. Her grandmother 
loves listening to her stories, so 
Reshma was writing a new story 
to share with her grandmother 
on her 60th birthday. 
Exploring Magnets
The story was based on a ship 
carrying spices from Kerala for 
trade in the olden days. Reshma 
was aware that in those days, 
the sailors used stars to find 
directions at night. But in her 
story, a situation arose wherein 
the sailors got caught in a storm 
with an overcast sky and stars 
were not visible. Reshma could not take her story forward 
as she could not think of a way for sailors to find directions.  
She searched for information on the internet and her 
school library. She learnt that the travellers used a device, 
known as a magnetic compass, for finding 
directions.  
Reshma had seen pencil boxes and 
purses which had magnets to keep them 
closed. A writing board in her school 
also had a duster with a magnet. But 
she had never looked at those carefully. 
She now became curious to learn more 
about magnets and magnetic compasses.
Chapter 4.indd   61 10-07-2024   14:45:56
Page 2


4 Chapter
Reshma lives in a coastal town of 
Kerala and is very fond of writing 
short stories. Her grandmother 
loves listening to her stories, so 
Reshma was writing a new story 
to share with her grandmother 
on her 60th birthday. 
Exploring Magnets
The story was based on a ship 
carrying spices from Kerala for 
trade in the olden days. Reshma 
was aware that in those days, 
the sailors used stars to find 
directions at night. But in her 
story, a situation arose wherein 
the sailors got caught in a storm 
with an overcast sky and stars 
were not visible. Reshma could not take her story forward 
as she could not think of a way for sailors to find directions.  
She searched for information on the internet and her 
school library. She learnt that the travellers used a device, 
known as a magnetic compass, for finding 
directions.  
Reshma had seen pencil boxes and 
purses which had magnets to keep them 
closed. A writing board in her school 
also had a duster with a magnet. But 
she had never looked at those carefully. 
She now became curious to learn more 
about magnets and magnetic compasses.
Chapter 4.indd   61 10-07-2024   14:45:56
The magnets used by sailors in the olden days were based 
on naturally occurring magnets, known as lodestones which 
were discovered in ancient times. Later on, people found 
out that magnets could also be made from pieces of iron. 
Nowadays, we have magnets made of different materials. 
The magnets that you find in your school laboratory and 
those used in pencil boxes, stickers, toys are all artificial 
magnets (Fig. 4.1). The magnets can be of various shapes, 
some of which are shown in Fig. 4.2.
Fig. 4.1: Some common items that have magnets attached to them
4.1 Magnetic and Non-magnetic Materials 
Activity 4.1: Let us explore
 ? Collect a few objects made of different materials and 
also a magnet. 
 ? Predict which of the objects will stick to the magnet. 
Write your prediction in Table 4.1. 
 ? Now hold a magnet in your hand and bring it near 
the objects one by one (Fig. 4.3). Observe which of the 
objects stick to the magnet. 
Do magnets 
stick to objects 
made of certain 
materials only?
?
Bar 
magnet
U-shaped 
magnet
 Ring 
magnet
Fig. 4.2: Magnets of different shapes
Curiosity | Textbook of Science | Grade 6
62
Chapter 4.indd   62 10-07-2024   14:45:58
Page 3


4 Chapter
Reshma lives in a coastal town of 
Kerala and is very fond of writing 
short stories. Her grandmother 
loves listening to her stories, so 
Reshma was writing a new story 
to share with her grandmother 
on her 60th birthday. 
Exploring Magnets
The story was based on a ship 
carrying spices from Kerala for 
trade in the olden days. Reshma 
was aware that in those days, 
the sailors used stars to find 
directions at night. But in her 
story, a situation arose wherein 
the sailors got caught in a storm 
with an overcast sky and stars 
were not visible. Reshma could not take her story forward 
as she could not think of a way for sailors to find directions.  
She searched for information on the internet and her 
school library. She learnt that the travellers used a device, 
known as a magnetic compass, for finding 
directions.  
Reshma had seen pencil boxes and 
purses which had magnets to keep them 
closed. A writing board in her school 
also had a duster with a magnet. But 
she had never looked at those carefully. 
She now became curious to learn more 
about magnets and magnetic compasses.
Chapter 4.indd   61 10-07-2024   14:45:56
The magnets used by sailors in the olden days were based 
on naturally occurring magnets, known as lodestones which 
were discovered in ancient times. Later on, people found 
out that magnets could also be made from pieces of iron. 
Nowadays, we have magnets made of different materials. 
The magnets that you find in your school laboratory and 
those used in pencil boxes, stickers, toys are all artificial 
magnets (Fig. 4.1). The magnets can be of various shapes, 
some of which are shown in Fig. 4.2.
Fig. 4.1: Some common items that have magnets attached to them
4.1 Magnetic and Non-magnetic Materials 
Activity 4.1: Let us explore
 ? Collect a few objects made of different materials and 
also a magnet. 
 ? Predict which of the objects will stick to the magnet. 
Write your prediction in Table 4.1. 
 ? Now hold a magnet in your hand and bring it near 
the objects one by one (Fig. 4.3). Observe which of the 
objects stick to the magnet. 
Do magnets 
stick to objects 
made of certain 
materials only?
?
Bar 
magnet
U-shaped 
magnet
 Ring 
magnet
Fig. 4.2: Magnets of different shapes
Curiosity | Textbook of Science | Grade 6
62
Chapter 4.indd   62 10-07-2024   14:45:58
Name of the 
object
Material which the 
object is made of  
(plastic/wood/glass/
iron/any other)
Attracted by the  
magnet (Yes/No)
Prediction Observation
Pencil Wood
Eraser Rubber
Fig. 4.3: Identifying the materials attracted by a magnet
 ? Record your observations in Table 4.1.   
Table 4.1: Identifying the materials attracted by a magnet
4.1 Magnetic and Non-magnetic Materials 
Activity 4.1: Let us explore
 ? Collect a few objects made of different materials and 
also a magnet. 
 ? Predict which of the objects will stick to the magnet. 
Write your prediction in Table 4.1. 
 ? Now hold a magnet in your hand and bring it near 
the objects one by one (Fig. 4.3). Observe which of the 
objects stick to the magnet. 
Exploring Magnets
63
Chapter 4.indd   63 10-07-2024   14:46:14
Page 4


4 Chapter
Reshma lives in a coastal town of 
Kerala and is very fond of writing 
short stories. Her grandmother 
loves listening to her stories, so 
Reshma was writing a new story 
to share with her grandmother 
on her 60th birthday. 
Exploring Magnets
The story was based on a ship 
carrying spices from Kerala for 
trade in the olden days. Reshma 
was aware that in those days, 
the sailors used stars to find 
directions at night. But in her 
story, a situation arose wherein 
the sailors got caught in a storm 
with an overcast sky and stars 
were not visible. Reshma could not take her story forward 
as she could not think of a way for sailors to find directions.  
She searched for information on the internet and her 
school library. She learnt that the travellers used a device, 
known as a magnetic compass, for finding 
directions.  
Reshma had seen pencil boxes and 
purses which had magnets to keep them 
closed. A writing board in her school 
also had a duster with a magnet. But 
she had never looked at those carefully. 
She now became curious to learn more 
about magnets and magnetic compasses.
Chapter 4.indd   61 10-07-2024   14:45:56
The magnets used by sailors in the olden days were based 
on naturally occurring magnets, known as lodestones which 
were discovered in ancient times. Later on, people found 
out that magnets could also be made from pieces of iron. 
Nowadays, we have magnets made of different materials. 
The magnets that you find in your school laboratory and 
those used in pencil boxes, stickers, toys are all artificial 
magnets (Fig. 4.1). The magnets can be of various shapes, 
some of which are shown in Fig. 4.2.
Fig. 4.1: Some common items that have magnets attached to them
4.1 Magnetic and Non-magnetic Materials 
Activity 4.1: Let us explore
 ? Collect a few objects made of different materials and 
also a magnet. 
 ? Predict which of the objects will stick to the magnet. 
Write your prediction in Table 4.1. 
 ? Now hold a magnet in your hand and bring it near 
the objects one by one (Fig. 4.3). Observe which of the 
objects stick to the magnet. 
Do magnets 
stick to objects 
made of certain 
materials only?
?
Bar 
magnet
U-shaped 
magnet
 Ring 
magnet
Fig. 4.2: Magnets of different shapes
Curiosity | Textbook of Science | Grade 6
62
Chapter 4.indd   62 10-07-2024   14:45:58
Name of the 
object
Material which the 
object is made of  
(plastic/wood/glass/
iron/any other)
Attracted by the  
magnet (Yes/No)
Prediction Observation
Pencil Wood
Eraser Rubber
Fig. 4.3: Identifying the materials attracted by a magnet
 ? Record your observations in Table 4.1.   
Table 4.1: Identifying the materials attracted by a magnet
4.1 Magnetic and Non-magnetic Materials 
Activity 4.1: Let us explore
 ? Collect a few objects made of different materials and 
also a magnet. 
 ? Predict which of the objects will stick to the magnet. 
Write your prediction in Table 4.1. 
 ? Now hold a magnet in your hand and bring it near 
the objects one by one (Fig. 4.3). Observe which of the 
objects stick to the magnet. 
Exploring Magnets
63
Chapter 4.indd   63 10-07-2024   14:46:14
Was your prediction correct for all objects? Which 
materials stuck to the magnet? What conclusion can you 
draw?
Through this activity, we found out that some of the 
objects were attracted to the magnet and stuck to it, while 
others were not. The materials which are attracted towards 
a magnet are called magnetic materials. 
The metal iron is a magnetic material. 
Nickel and cobalt are other metals that are 
also magnetic. Some of their combinations 
with other metals are also attracted 
towards magnets. The materials which are 
not attracted towards a magnet are called  
non-magnetic materials. 
Which materials listed in Table 4.1 were 
found to be non-magnetic? 
4.2 Poles of Magnet
Activity 4.2: Let us investigate
 ? Spread some iron filings (very small pieces of iron) on a 
sheet of paper . 
 ? Place a bar magnet over them. Tap the paper and 
observe carefully what happens to the iron filings. 
Do you observe anything special about the way they stick 
to the magnet? Do the iron filings stick all over the magnet 
uniformly? Or do the iron filings stick more at some places? 
We find that maximum iron filings stick near the ends of 
the bar magnet, as shown in Fig. 4.4, while a very few iron 
filings stick at the remaining part of the magnet.
These ends of the magnet are called the 
two poles of the magnet—the North pole and 
the South pole. Most of the iron filings stick 
to the poles of a magnet of any shape. 
It is not possible to obtain a magnet with 
a single pole. If a magnet is broken into 
smaller pieces, North and South poles always 
exist in pairs even in the smallest piece of the magnet. 
A single North pole or a South pole cannot exist.
4.3 Finding Directions
Activity 4.3: Let us experiment
 ? Suspend a bar magnet with a thread tied to the middle of 
the magnet as shown in Fig. 4.5. You may need to adjust 
the position of the string till the magnet is balanced 
horizontally.
 ? Now rotate the magnet gently in the 
horizontal direction and let it come to rest. 
 ? Mark the position corresponding to the 
ends of the magnet on the ground (or on 
a piece of paper stuck to the ground). Join 
these two points on the ground with a 
line. This line indicates the direction along 
which the magnet comes to rest. 
 ? Now again rotate the magnet by giving a 
gentle push at its one end and wait till it 
comes to rest. Does the magnet rest along 
the same line?
Fig. 4.4: Iron filings sticking 
to a bar magnet 
Do all parts of a 
magnet attract 
magnetic 
materials 
equally? ?
If we repeat this 
activity with 
magnets of other 
shapes, do we get 
the same result?
Curiosity | Textbook of Science | Grade 6
64
Chapter 4.indd   64 10-07-2024   14:46:16
Page 5


4 Chapter
Reshma lives in a coastal town of 
Kerala and is very fond of writing 
short stories. Her grandmother 
loves listening to her stories, so 
Reshma was writing a new story 
to share with her grandmother 
on her 60th birthday. 
Exploring Magnets
The story was based on a ship 
carrying spices from Kerala for 
trade in the olden days. Reshma 
was aware that in those days, 
the sailors used stars to find 
directions at night. But in her 
story, a situation arose wherein 
the sailors got caught in a storm 
with an overcast sky and stars 
were not visible. Reshma could not take her story forward 
as she could not think of a way for sailors to find directions.  
She searched for information on the internet and her 
school library. She learnt that the travellers used a device, 
known as a magnetic compass, for finding 
directions.  
Reshma had seen pencil boxes and 
purses which had magnets to keep them 
closed. A writing board in her school 
also had a duster with a magnet. But 
she had never looked at those carefully. 
She now became curious to learn more 
about magnets and magnetic compasses.
Chapter 4.indd   61 10-07-2024   14:45:56
The magnets used by sailors in the olden days were based 
on naturally occurring magnets, known as lodestones which 
were discovered in ancient times. Later on, people found 
out that magnets could also be made from pieces of iron. 
Nowadays, we have magnets made of different materials. 
The magnets that you find in your school laboratory and 
those used in pencil boxes, stickers, toys are all artificial 
magnets (Fig. 4.1). The magnets can be of various shapes, 
some of which are shown in Fig. 4.2.
Fig. 4.1: Some common items that have magnets attached to them
4.1 Magnetic and Non-magnetic Materials 
Activity 4.1: Let us explore
 ? Collect a few objects made of different materials and 
also a magnet. 
 ? Predict which of the objects will stick to the magnet. 
Write your prediction in Table 4.1. 
 ? Now hold a magnet in your hand and bring it near 
the objects one by one (Fig. 4.3). Observe which of the 
objects stick to the magnet. 
Do magnets 
stick to objects 
made of certain 
materials only?
?
Bar 
magnet
U-shaped 
magnet
 Ring 
magnet
Fig. 4.2: Magnets of different shapes
Curiosity | Textbook of Science | Grade 6
62
Chapter 4.indd   62 10-07-2024   14:45:58
Name of the 
object
Material which the 
object is made of  
(plastic/wood/glass/
iron/any other)
Attracted by the  
magnet (Yes/No)
Prediction Observation
Pencil Wood
Eraser Rubber
Fig. 4.3: Identifying the materials attracted by a magnet
 ? Record your observations in Table 4.1.   
Table 4.1: Identifying the materials attracted by a magnet
4.1 Magnetic and Non-magnetic Materials 
Activity 4.1: Let us explore
 ? Collect a few objects made of different materials and 
also a magnet. 
 ? Predict which of the objects will stick to the magnet. 
Write your prediction in Table 4.1. 
 ? Now hold a magnet in your hand and bring it near 
the objects one by one (Fig. 4.3). Observe which of the 
objects stick to the magnet. 
Exploring Magnets
63
Chapter 4.indd   63 10-07-2024   14:46:14
Was your prediction correct for all objects? Which 
materials stuck to the magnet? What conclusion can you 
draw?
Through this activity, we found out that some of the 
objects were attracted to the magnet and stuck to it, while 
others were not. The materials which are attracted towards 
a magnet are called magnetic materials. 
The metal iron is a magnetic material. 
Nickel and cobalt are other metals that are 
also magnetic. Some of their combinations 
with other metals are also attracted 
towards magnets. The materials which are 
not attracted towards a magnet are called  
non-magnetic materials. 
Which materials listed in Table 4.1 were 
found to be non-magnetic? 
4.2 Poles of Magnet
Activity 4.2: Let us investigate
 ? Spread some iron filings (very small pieces of iron) on a 
sheet of paper . 
 ? Place a bar magnet over them. Tap the paper and 
observe carefully what happens to the iron filings. 
Do you observe anything special about the way they stick 
to the magnet? Do the iron filings stick all over the magnet 
uniformly? Or do the iron filings stick more at some places? 
We find that maximum iron filings stick near the ends of 
the bar magnet, as shown in Fig. 4.4, while a very few iron 
filings stick at the remaining part of the magnet.
These ends of the magnet are called the 
two poles of the magnet—the North pole and 
the South pole. Most of the iron filings stick 
to the poles of a magnet of any shape. 
It is not possible to obtain a magnet with 
a single pole. If a magnet is broken into 
smaller pieces, North and South poles always 
exist in pairs even in the smallest piece of the magnet. 
A single North pole or a South pole cannot exist.
4.3 Finding Directions
Activity 4.3: Let us experiment
 ? Suspend a bar magnet with a thread tied to the middle of 
the magnet as shown in Fig. 4.5. You may need to adjust 
the position of the string till the magnet is balanced 
horizontally.
 ? Now rotate the magnet gently in the 
horizontal direction and let it come to rest. 
 ? Mark the position corresponding to the 
ends of the magnet on the ground (or on 
a piece of paper stuck to the ground). Join 
these two points on the ground with a 
line. This line indicates the direction along 
which the magnet comes to rest. 
 ? Now again rotate the magnet by giving a 
gentle push at its one end and wait till it 
comes to rest. Does the magnet rest along 
the same line?
Fig. 4.4: Iron filings sticking 
to a bar magnet 
Do all parts of a 
magnet attract 
magnetic 
materials 
equally? ?
If we repeat this 
activity with 
magnets of other 
shapes, do we get 
the same result?
Curiosity | Textbook of Science | Grade 6
64
Chapter 4.indd   64 10-07-2024   14:46:16
If we have noticed the direction 
where the Sun rises or sets, we 
have an approximate idea of 
where East or West is. Hence, we 
can locate the direction along 
which the magnet rests.
Was your prediction correct for all objects? Which 
materials stuck to the magnet? What conclusion can you 
draw?
Through this activity, we found out that some of the 
objects were attracted to the magnet and stuck to it, while 
others were not. The materials which are attracted towards 
a magnet are called magnetic materials. 
The metal iron is a magnetic material. 
Nickel and cobalt are other metals that are 
also magnetic. Some of their combinations 
with other metals are also attracted 
towards magnets. The materials which are 
not attracted towards a magnet are called  
non-magnetic materials. 
Which materials listed in Table 4.1 were 
found to be non-magnetic? 
4.2 Poles of Magnet
Activity 4.2: Let us investigate
 ? Spread some iron filings (very small pieces of iron) on a 
sheet of paper . 
 ? Place a bar magnet over them. Tap the paper and 
observe carefully what happens to the iron filings. 
Do you observe anything special about the way they stick 
to the magnet? Do the iron filings stick all over the magnet 
uniformly? Or do the iron filings stick more at some places? 
We find that maximum iron filings stick near the ends of 
the bar magnet, as shown in Fig. 4.4, while a very few iron 
filings stick at the remaining part of the magnet.
These ends of the magnet are called the 
two poles of the magnet—the North pole and 
the South pole. Most of the iron filings stick 
to the poles of a magnet of any shape. 
It is not possible to obtain a magnet with 
a single pole. If a magnet is broken into 
smaller pieces, North and South poles always 
exist in pairs even in the smallest piece of the magnet. 
A single North pole or a South pole cannot exist.
4.3 Finding Directions
Activity 4.3: Let us experiment
 ? Suspend a bar magnet with a thread tied to the middle of 
the magnet as shown in Fig. 4.5. You may need to adjust 
the position of the string till the magnet is balanced 
horizontally.
 ? Now rotate the magnet gently in the 
horizontal direction and let it come to rest. 
 ? Mark the position corresponding to the 
ends of the magnet on the ground (or on 
a piece of paper stuck to the ground). Join 
these two points on the ground with a 
line. This line indicates the direction along 
which the magnet comes to rest. 
 ? Now again rotate the magnet by giving a 
gentle push at its one end and wait till it 
comes to rest. Does the magnet rest along 
the same line?
Fig. 4.5: A freely suspended 
bar magnet
Can we find 
a magnet 
with a 
single pole?
?
What direction does 
this line indicate 
along which the 
magnet rests? How 
can we find it out?
Exploring Magnets
65
Chapter 4.indd   65 10-07-2024   14:46:16