Make Your Own Compass

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Description

Creative activity and making a compass will help you navigate when you’re next out exploring.

One of the 'Cub Year Of Adventure 2015' activities


Resources

Sewing needle, plastic bottle top, small magnet, clear sticky tape, small shallow dish, water, knife.

Instructions

1. Each Cub magnetises the needle by stroking the needle with one end of the magnet roughly 40 times from top to bottom.
2. Once the needle has been magnetised, ask the Cubs to attach the needle using the clear sticky tape to the bottle cap (cap facing upwards).
3. Float the bottle cap in a dish of water. The water will allow the bottle cap to rotate. Let it rotate until the north pole of the needle points towards the magnetic north pole.
4. And there you have it, they have created a compass!
5. Ask the Cubs to test their compass with a manufactured compass and see if there are any discrepancies.


Tags

  • compass
  • creative
  • Technology Activities
  • Year of Adventure

Badge Links

  • Scientist - Compass