Why do magnets sometimes snap together and sometimes shove away?
Magnets do a secret little dance… sometimes they jump together, and sometimes they run away! Every magnet has a red end and a blue end. Now a red end and a blue end are coming close. What will they do? Ready to guess… will they hug, or push?
After you watchWhy do magnets sometimes snap together and sometimes shove away?
The short answer
Magnets pull together or push apart depending on which ends meet. Every magnet has two different ends. Two different ends hug and snap together; two of the same end push apart.
The whole story
How it works
The pull lives at a magnet's two ends. When a magnet's different ends face each other, they pull together and snap. When the same kind of end faces another same end, they push apart. Flip one magnet around and a hug turns into a push, because you swapped which end is facing.
What people get wrong
Lots of kids think a magnet is just 'sticky.' But the same two magnets can hug OR push — it all depends on which ends meet. Turn one magnet around and watch a hug become a push.
Questions kids ask
Why do magnets sometimes push instead of pull?
Because two of the same end are facing each other. Same ends always push apart. Turn one magnet around so a different end faces, and now they hug.
Does every magnet have two different ends?
Yes! Every magnet has two ends that are not the same. Different ends pull together, and matching ends push apart.
Keep going
What else makes you wonder?
- What if you turn the magnet around — will the hug become a push?
- Magnets pull without even touching. What else can pull from far away?