Article: Can trains really float? What object uses a force and a magnetic field to move and levitates above the ground using a minimal amount of energy?--A Maglev train.

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Have you ever heard of a Maglev train? Who would be crazy enough to think that exploring how a high-tech train little known in the United States works with a group of fourth-grade students would yield understandings about the properties of magnetism, force and motion, and inquiry science? Luckily, we--a college methods professor and two elementary education students--were, and the hands-on exploration we developed and tested with our students was a resounding success. When we began the lessons, our students had some previous knowledge of magnets--e.g, they knew that magnets have poles and attract and repel objects in various ways.

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