Magnetism & the Earth's Magnetic Field is one of 9 topics in the Grade 11 Technical Sciences CAPS syllabus, covered across 3 lessons on Study Vault. Below are real practice questions from this topic with full worked answers.
Sample practice questions
Easy
1. What happens if a bar magnet is cut into two smaller pieces?
Each piece still has both a north pole and a south pole
One piece becomes a pure north pole, the other a pure south pole
Both pieces lose all magnetism
Only one of the two pieces remains magnetic
Answer: Each piece still has both a north pole and a south pole — Even when a magnet is cut into pieces, each piece still has both a north pole and a south pole; a single isolated magnetic pole does not exist.
Easy
2. What happens when two like magnetic poles (e.g. north-north) are brought close together?
They repel each other
They attract each other
They have no effect on each other
They cancel out and lose all magnetism
Answer: They repel each other — Like magnetic poles (north-north or south-south) repel each other, while opposite poles attract each other.
Medium
3. Give ONE instrument used to determine the direction of a magnetic field at a point.
Answer: compass — A compass can be used to determine the direction of a magnetic field, since its needle aligns with the local field direction.
