wunder beta🧲 Magnetic Fields
Magnets can pull and push without ever touching. Explore poles, the invisible magnetic field around every magnet, and why Earth itself is one giant magnet.
What you’ll learn
- Magnets and PolesIdentify magnetic poles and apply the rule that like poles repel and unlike poles attract.Magnetism is a non-contact force. Every magnet has a north and a south pole, where its force is strongest. Like poles (north–north or south–south) repel and push apart, while unlike poles (north–south) attract and pull together.
- The Magnetic FieldDescribe the magnetic field and read field lines around a bar magnet.The magnetic field is the region around a magnet where its force acts. Iron filings reveal it as curved field lines that loop from the north pole to the south pole. The field is strongest at the poles, where the lines bunch together, and weakens with distance.
- Earth's MagnetismExplain that Earth acts as a magnet, how a compass works, and which materials are magnetic.Molten metal deep inside Earth makes the planet behave like a giant bar magnet with its own field. A compass is a small magnet that lines up with this field to point north. Only a few metals — iron, steel, nickel, and cobalt — are magnetic; wood, plastic, and glass are not.
Questions this course answers
What are the two ends of a magnet called?
Every magnet has a north pole and a south pole, where its pull is strongest.
What happens when two north poles are pushed together?
Like poles repel, so two north poles push each other apart.
What is the magnetic field?
The magnetic field is the area around a magnet where its magnetic force can be felt.
Magnetic field lines around a bar magnet run from...
Outside the magnet, field lines loop from the north pole around to the south pole.
Why does a compass needle always point north?
A compass is a tiny magnet, and Earth's magnetic field lines it up so one end points north.
Which object would a magnet attract?
Only certain metals like iron are magnetic, so the iron nail is the one a magnet attracts.
Grounded in trusted sources
- BBC Bitesize
- Britannica
- The Physics Classroom
- NASA
Every Wunder lesson is built from real, reputable sources — never invented.
Related Science courses
Wunder is a personalized learn-anything platform — tell it any topic and it builds a beautiful, fact-checked course in minutes, with narration, a knowledge check, and a college-style University track.
Browse more Science courses · All topics · Home
© 2026 Wunder Learning LLC · Terms & Privacy