One of the odd characteristics about electrons is that they have a quality called spin . It turns out that if the electrons in a particular domain all have the same spin, they create a kind of electric current that produces a magnetic force. If all of the domains and magnetic forces in an object are pointing the same way, you ll have a magnet. You might think this is fairly common, but it s not. You need both enough of the electrons to have the same spin, and the domains to be pointed in the same way, to have a magnet.
Most metals don t have both.
But some metals have the ability to be forced into this arrangement, which brings us back to your science fair project. In order to force the metal to be a magnet, you need to force the domains to point in the same direction. This can be accomplished by bringing a very strong magnetic field in close contact with the metal and rubbing the magnet in one direction along the length of the metal you want to magnetize. You can use either an electromagnet or a very strong permanent magnet. What you are doing is temporarily forcing the domains in the metal to line up with the domains, or magnetic force, in the magnet.