Magnet Maze Game Designing Activity – Learn Science and Art

From this article, you can learn to make a magnet maze game and teach physics as well as art (STEAM) activities for kids.

Design a magnet maze

My kids love to play with magnets and hence I decided to teach them the magnetic force with an experiment.

Suitable For

Both preschoolers and kindergarteners can try this experiment. Tisha was 3 years and 6 months old when we did this experiment.

Please Note ...

This activity includes magnet and steel ball. Therefore you need to be vigilant in not letting children put them in the mouth. It causes a choking hazard. If you are sure that your kids will not put in their mouth, then let them do this activity. Anyways use a big size magnet to avoid any accidents. Even by mistake if kids swallow the magnet then it will get attracted with the particles present in the gut and lead to serious problems.

Steps involved in making the magnet maze game

Things required

  • Long Magnet
  • White Paper
  • Markers, pencils, and crayons
  • Steel balls small in size

You can try getting Stix markers and steel balls and magnetic rods from Geomag (these are affiliate links). You can also use similar items if available at home.

 

Find our review for Geomag products

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Steps to follow

  1. Draw the maze with a clear path on a paper. You can also choose online maze and print them. Allow kids to color them and decorate.
  2. Place the magnet below the paper and steel ball on top.
  3. When the magnet is moved it will pull the steel ball on the top and make it move as well.

We tried with multiple combinations of mazes. Each time, I tried to increase the complexity by adding different routes and then let the kids find out the right way out. The kids loved them 🙂

Playing with the DIY magnet maze game 

Initially, kids will find it tricky to understand how the steel ball rolls by moving the magnet. But once they get a hold on it, then they will start playing maze crazily. I have experienced this personally with my Tisha who is 3.5 years old.

She also tried with different colors and designs to add more fun. She played with crayons and colors having loads of fun.

Design your own magnet maze game

You can see her moving the magnet to see the ball rolling above.

DIY Magnet Maze game

After school, my elder one Pritika 6 years old played with the maze. But she tried to analyze the design and then figured out a traditional maze design.  I helped her with some images from online to inspire her to get some ideas.

DIY magnet maze

Extension Idea: Older kids of age 7+ can think innovatively to make new designs and decorate them. This is one of the best STEM pillar subjects. Also, this can be a good STEAM activity.

Several IT programs like Picmonkey can be used to design maze online.

Fun Science Facts

The invisible force gravity will pull objects downwards to earth. The movement metal ball is due to gravity. Yes, this force will pull the ball to the floor.

Magnetic force is another force applied in this game and that is invisible too. This force is created by the magnet and it attracts the steel ball towards it.

This is the basic concept used in this activity. Both are physics concepts and kids can quickly get a grip of it. They may not understand in depth but at least will know that there is a force named gravity that will pull the object towards the ground. Likewise, there is a force called a magnetic force which will attract metal objects towards it.

Four Magnet Maze Designs

Get more physics fun activities from the list given below

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