Making abstract concepts real to students is a common issue for science teachers. Among the many ways of doing this, video can serve as an essential tool that students are comfortable with—to connect potentially difficult science concepts with real-world examples. And because video can visually convey what goes on in the world outside the classroom, it has the capacity to bring to life otherwise dry topics that seemingly have no application.

As part of his lesson on electricity and magnetism shown here, teacher Jeff Texeira uses a video resource on the Hoover Dam to inspire a class discussion about electrical energy. Texeira shows the video and then begins a dynamic conversation with his students about sources of electrical energy and the impact electricity has on the students’ daily lives.

As a “visit to the real world,” videos motivate students needing a reason to study a particular topic by showing how science actually happens. Alternately, they help stimulate the imagination of students who need a visual representation for an abstract concept.

Video can expand isolated ideas into broader contexts and show students how such ideas are being actually used “out there” in the world they know.

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