In-text Questions — Magnetic Field and Field Lines — Magnetic Effects of Electric Current

1. 12 marksNCERT Cl-10 Science, In-text Q after §12.1

   Why does a compass needle get deflected when brought near a bar magnet?

   Hint. A compass needle isn't just a pointer — it's a magnet in its own right.

   Step 1 — Recall what a compass needle is. A compass needle is itself a small bar magnet, with its own north and south poles.

   Step 2 — Apply the rule for how magnets interact. Like poles repel and unlike poles attract, so when the needle enters the magnetic field of the bar magnet, it experiences forces from the bar magnet's poles.

   Step 3 — State the result. These forces exert a turning effect on the needle, deflecting it away from its original direction until it settles in line with the bar magnet's field.

   ✦ Answer: The compass needle is itself a small magnet, so it experiences attraction/repulsion forces from the bar magnet's poles, which deflect it to align with the bar magnet's magnetic field.

   Where students slip. Treating the compass needle as a passive pointer with no magnetic properties of its own — the deflection specifically happens because the needle is itself a magnet, subject to the same attract/repel rules as any other magnet.

Solutions written by the tuition.in editorial team and checked against the NCERT Class 10 Science textbook, Reprint 2026-27 (jesc112.pdf) — five in-text question sets (12 questions total) plus one end-of-chapter Exercise (9 questions, not 18 as some older manifests claim). The electric motor, electromagnetic induction and electric generator have been removed from this chapter entirely (confirmed by full-text search) — they are named once as example devices, with no construction/working explained, and don't appear in the chapter's own 'What you have learnt' summary. One exercise question (Q7(iii)) still references induced current despite this; it is answered using Fleming's right-hand rule, flagged accordingly.. Questions are referenced from the NCERT textbook for identification.