Relevance of practical work to comprehension of physics

It is suggested that three types of experiment should be added to those normally used in physics courses. One type is the unusual experiment which engages the emotions through being odd, dramatic, beautiful or puzzling. Another type is intended to establish generalised episodes involving materials and events of common experience, with the purposes of linking school subject matter and daily life and of providing experiences which will be called into play in making subsequent information comprehensible. The third type consists of true problem solving exercises which serve to integrate students' knowledge of physics, making that knowledge more readily recallable and applicable to further problems.