Nikola Tesla Discussion Prompts and Pause Points

Read the movie description that appears below the movie player on the Nikola Tesla Topic Page. Then use the following prompts to encourage class discussion before, during, and after watching the movie.

Before the Movie

What do you know about Nikola Tesla? 

How does electricity get into our homes?

During the Movie (Pause Points)

Stop at the following times in the movie and ask questions or prompt a discussion to keep students focused and to assess their understanding before moving on:

Timecode 1:23: How does electromagnetic induction produce motion?

Timecode 2:10: Why and how does using DC current create sparks? 

Timecode 2:55: What are the negatives of needing lots of power plants?

Timecode 3:18: What’s the relationship between magnetic fields and Tesla’s transformer? 

Timecode 5:22:  What does it mean that a Tesla coil boosts a hertz frequency to 300,000? 

After the Movie

What do you think Marconi’s defense was, when Tesla accused him of stealing his patents?

In what ways did Edison and Tesla have different priorities? 

*BrainPOP’s Discussion Questions and Prompts align to CCSS Speaking and Listening Standards.