Magnetic Christmas STEM Activities
Santa Claus, Snow Mazes and Tree Decorating – It’s time for some seasonal STEM with magnet wands! The holiday season is the perfect time to explore the invisible, yet powerful, science of magnetism. Magnetic Christmas STEM activities are sure to be crowd pleasers this holiday season! These challenges blend the excitement of the holidays with fundamental principles of force, motion, and magnetic fields, making science feel magically festive! These projects are perfect for 6–12 year olds but could easily be adapted to younger learners with appropriate supervision and support from a responsible adult.
Festive Magnetic STEM for the Classroom
Table of Contents
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The Science of Magnets
Attraction: The magnet creates a strong magnetic field that exerts a force on the metal paperclip. The paperclip is made of ferromagnetic material, simply meaning it is strongly attracted to magnets.
For a detailed explanation of magnetism check out Magnet Experiments for the Classroom.
Important to note: Magnetic force can act through non-magnetic materials such as paper and cardboard, which is why these materials in the projects don’t affect the magnetic attraction.
IMPORTANT SAFETY NOTE: Adjust activities to suit your children’s ages and abilities. Children should not be allowed to use smaller magnets without supervision. Magnets should never go in or near a child’s mouth. Magnets can be extremely dangerous if they are swallowed. Always supervise children closely when using small magnets.
Make Santa Take Flight!
Who doesn’t want to see Santa in the sky? This flying Santa demonstration has Santa take flight with a magnet wand! It’s a holiday STEM experiment where students guide a paper Santa reinforced with metal paperclips into flight using a magnet wand.
What Do You Need?
Some construction paper to create Santa or a Santa cutout two pieces you can glue together
Large Paper Clips
String
Tape
Magnet Wand
Directions
Step 1: Have your students use construction paper or cardstock to make a Santa by drawing and cutting out the shape (you can also grab an image and have the kids cut it out). It can be as simple or as creative as they want. They will need a front and a back for their creation.
Pro Tip! If you want some easy cut outs, you can reuse the ones from our Christmas Straw Rockets project. 2 fun and festive activities in one!
Step 2: Tape a piece of string to your tabletop.
Step 3: Take one side of your Santa and lay it flat on the table face down. Tape the free end of the string to the backside of your cutout. Take a large paperclip or two and tape them near the top of your Santa on the inside. Tape or glue the second side of your Santa to the first to make a Santa sandwich!
Step 4: Place your wand near Santa and slowly move it upward. The magnet in the wand will attract the metal in the paperclips and lift Santa off the table. As you move the wand Santa will rise and “fly” along the magnetic field.
Extra Challenge: Have students make Santa both lift off and land on a set course. Talk about arcs and how shorter and longer strings allow for different-sized flight paths.
Quick Magnetic Fun: Mazes and Motion
Magnetic Snowman Maze Challenge
This activity is excellent for strengthening fine motor skills while also practicing spatial reasoning and concentration.
What do you need?
Small white pom poms
Glue Dots
Paper Clips
A piece of cardboard
Construction Paper
Art Materials like markers or paint
A magnet wand
Directions
Step 1: Make your snowman. Use glue dots (or school clue works too!) to assemble a snowman and then put two paper clip skis on the bottom of the snowman. And take a moment to admire how incredibly adorable your snowman on skis is!
Step 2: Make a maze on the cardboard by simply drawing or painting it or building one up with paper and cardboard.
Step 3: Place your snowman on the starting point of your maze. Now place your wand under the maze directly underneath the snowman. This involves some great spatial awareness and reasoning skills.
Step 4: Use the wand to move the snowman through the maze on his skis!
Decorate a Tree with Magnets
A simple, fun game that builds patience and persistence as kids use a magnetism to decorate a Christmas Tree.
What do I need?
Some paper ornament cutouts
Paperclips
A large flat piece of cardboard with a tree painted on it.
Smaller Round Magnets
Glue Dots
Tape
Directions
Step 1: Create a Christmas Tree on your Cardboard Sheet. Have your students use paint, markers or crayons to make a tree.
Step 2: Use glue dots to adhere some magnets to the underside of the tree. This step is best done by an adult if your kids are younger or struggle with fine motor.
Step 3: Create your ornaments. Let your kids get creative with this task so their trees are uniquely theirs. Make sure to tape paper clips to the backside of each one.
Step 4: Have the kids “hang” the ornament by moving them around until they feel the magnet grab the ornament. . Once the magnet connects, they can let go. They are always a little amazed when the ornaments don’t fall off the tree!
Step 5: Repeat until the entire tree is decorated.
By incorporating magnets into your holiday STEM projects, you give children a hands-on, memorable way to investigate magnetic forces. The invisible pull and push of magnets provide endless fascination, ensuring that your Christmas STEM projects with magnets are a huge hit and that students walk away with a deeper understanding of the science all around them.