Have the children work in groups of three or less. Tape the ends of each pond to separate desks keeping the center of the pond suspended in air. Place the paperclip fish on one side of the pond. Give each group a magnet. The assessment here is making sure that each group eventually figures out how to get their fish to swim across the water.
Combined magnets create a stronger magnetic field.
Make a class summary bar graph for quantity of paperclips. Have children use this data to construct a reasonable explanation for their results. Magnets are surrounded by a magnetic field. Observe the force of a magnetic field. Students should work in pairs.