Inventors and Inventions

Activities

Grades K–2: Science/Language Arts
Invention Alphabet
Send students on a classroom or school building scavenger hunt for inventions. Give each student or pair of students a letter of the alphabet and have them look for inventions that begin with that letter.

Grades K–4: Science
Patent Puzzle
Have students put together a puzzle to reveal the seal of the United States Patent and Trademark Office.
Seal of the United States Patent and Trademark Office
http://www.uspto.gov/web/offices/ac/ahrpa/opa/kids/usptoseal.htm

Grades K–8: Science
Invent It
Have students create their own kooky inventions. They may not make it to the patent office, but kids will have fun coming up with their own unique ideas.
Kooky Inventions
http://www.girltech.com/invention/IN_kooky.html

Grades K–8: Science/Social Studies
Telephone Tour
Take students on a visual tour of telephones from 1877 through 1977. Have students tell how the telephones are similar and different.
Gallery: Telephones Through the Years
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/telephone/gallery/index.html

Grades 1–3: Science
Super Pencil
Ask students to think of ways they can improve upon the pencil, and then have them design and build a new one.
Inventing a New Kind of Pencil
http://www.noogenesis.com/inventing/pencil/pencil_page.html

Grades 1–4: Science/Social Studies
The Best Invention Ever
Brainstorm with students a list of 10-20 inventions that they think are the best ever. Then have each student choose one of the inventions, and explain to the class why that invention was the best one ever invented.

Grades 1–4: Science
Help Me!
Have children discuss how machines help people do things. Then have them "invent" machines that can help them do something they need help doing.
Inventors' Club
http://www.eduplace.com/rdg/gen_act/cando/invent.html

Grades 1–6: Science
Start Inventing!
Have students design their own inventions and then take part in a school-wide invention fair.
Be an Inventor
http://etc.sccoe.org/I99/inventor.html

Grades 1–8: Science
Quizzes
Test students' knowledge about inventors and inventions.
What Am I? (grades 1–2) (PDF file)
http://www.eduplace.com/monthlytheme/february/pdf/invent_1-2_quiz.pdf
What Am I? Answer Key (grades 1–2) (PDF file)
http://www.eduplace.com/monthlytheme/february/pdf/invent_1-2_quiz_key.pdf
Invention Challenge (grades 3–5) (PDF file)
http://www.eduplace.com/monthlytheme/february/pdf/invent_3-5_quiz.pdf
Invention Challenge Answer Key (grades 3–5) (PDF file)
http://www.eduplace.com/monthlytheme/february/pdf/invent_3-5_quiz_key.pdf
Ideas That Taste Good (grades 6–8) (PDF file)
http://www.eduplace.com/monthlytheme/february/pdf/invent_6-8_quiz.pdf
Ideas That Taste Good Answer Key (grades 6–8) (PDF file)
http://www.eduplace.com/monthlytheme/february/pdf/invent_6-8_quiz_key.pdf

Grades 1–8: Science
Show Off Your Inventions
Have an invention convention in your classroom or school.
Invention Convention
http://www.eduplace.com/science/invention/

Grades 2–6: Science
Be an Inventor
Have students role-play the part of inventors.
Young Inventors
http://henson.austin.apple.com/edres/ellesson/elem-younginvent.shtml

Grades 2–5: Science
Word Find
Have students find words related to inventions hidden in a puzzle.
Inventors and Inventions (grades 6–8) (PDF file)
http://www.eduplace.com/monthlytheme/february/pdf/invent_hard_wf.pdf
Inventors and Inventions Answer Key (grades 6–8) (PDF file)
http://www.eduplace.com/monthlytheme/february/pdf/invent_hard_wf_key.pdf

Grades 2–8: Science/Art
Contraption Creation
Have students create their own contraptions. They just need to print, color, cut, and assemble their creations.
Inventions! @ nationalgeographic.com
http://www.nationalgeographic.com/features/96/inventions/color/

Grades 3–5: Science
Invention Lesson
In this lesson, students will learn how some inventions came about accidentally, and how the story of an invention can be told in an interesting fashion.
Inventors and Inventions 1
http://school.discovery.com/lessonplans/programs/inventorsandinventions1/

Grades 3–8: Science/Math
Assembly Required
Inventors and problem-solvers have their own ways of looking at things. Challenge your students to assemble shapes to create a pattern.
Puzzle Blocks
http://www.inventionatplay.org/playhouse_puzzle.html

Grades 5–7: Science
Turning on the Light
In this experiment, your students will create working lightbulbs out of simple components.
Make a Light Bulb
http://www.si.edu/lemelson/edison/000_lightbulb_01.asp

Grades 5–8: Science
Patent Games
Can you get a trademark on a sound or color? Can you get a patent for your mother? Have your students find out the answers to these questions and many more.
U. S. Patent and Trademark Office: Kids' Pages (Mousetraps)
http://www.uspto.gov/go/kids/mousetraps.html
U. S. Patent and Trademark Office: Kids' Pages (Lie Detector)
http://www.uspto.gov/go/kids/trueorfalse.html

Grades 6–8: Science
Make a Contraption
Have students appraise the qualities of successful inventors and inventions, as well as examine the ways in which the Internet supports inventors, as a springboard for designing and "patenting" inventions that would be helpful to them in their daily lives.
Daily Lesson Plan
http://www.nytimes.com/learning/teachers/lessons/19990909thursday.html

Grades 6–8: Science
Follow the Bouncing Ball
Have students experiment with fun objects to try and make a bouncing ball go where it is supposed to.
Tinker Ball
http://www.inventionatplay.org/playhouse_tinker.html

Grades 6–8: Science/Social Studies
Invention History Challenge
Which came first? You might be surprised to find out how early—or how late—some inventions arrived.
Inventing Modern America: Games - Which Came First?
http://web.mit.edu/invent/www/ima/which1.html

Grades 7–8: Science/Social Studies
Chain of Invention
Necessity may be the mother of invention…but sometimes invention is the mother of invention, as one great idea leads to another. See if students can trace the path invention has taken over the centuries.
Inventing Modern America: Games - Invention Connection
http://web.mit.edu/invent/www/ima/connection.html

Grades 7–8: Science
Compare and Contrast
The computer is one of the greatest inventions of all time. However, many computers are already obsolete. Have students write a compare and contrast essay about computers of the past and how they are different and similar to the ones they use today.
Obsolete Computer Museum
http://www.obsoletecomputermuseum.org

Grades 7–8: Science
Inventions
Do your students know who invented many of the things they use today? Have them play this matching game and find out.
Who Invented What? Matchup (PDF file)
http://www.eduplace.com/monthlytheme/february/pdf/invent_match.pdf
Who Invented What? Matchup Answer Key (PDF file)
http://www.eduplace.com/monthlytheme/february/pdf/invent_match_key.pdf

Thomas A. Edison and the Menlo Park Laboratory
The Henry Ford Museum lets you explore Thomas Edison's laboratory, as recreated in at the Michigan museum.
http://www.hfmgv.org/exhibits/edison/default.asp

Smithsonian Education - Welcome
The Smithsonian Institute has become a repository of American ingenuity. Here you will find lesson plans and online features exploring American culture and inventiveness.
http://smithsonianeducation.org/

The Tech | Exhibits | Online | The Revolutionaries
The San Jose Mercury and the Tech Museum of Innovation interviewed some of the inventive innovators in Silicon Valley and got them to share their insights into what leads to creativity.
http://www.thetech.org/exhibits/online/revolution/

Invent Now | Hall of Fame | Overview
Check out the Inventors' Hall of Fame, which you can search by inventor, by invention, or by decade.
http://www.invent.org/hall_of_fame/1_0_0_hall_of_fame.asp

Lemelson-MIT
Find out all about inventors here. You can search by inventor's name or invention. The Inventor's Handbook provides answers to inventors' most frequently asked questions.
http://web.mit.edu/invent/

Leonardo Home Page
Leonardo da Vinci was not only an artist but was also a great inventor whose inventions were far ahead of his time.
http://www.mos.org/sln/Leonardo/LeoHomePage.html

Smith College Museum of Ancient Inventions: Museum Directory
This virtual museum from Smith College in Massachusetts includes some unusual and not-so-unusual inventions from ancient times. Find out who invented eyeliner, the potter's wheel, blown glass, and more.
http://www.smith.edu/hsc/museum/ancient_inventions/hsclist.htm

Zoom Inventors and Inventions
If the inventor or invention you're interested in isn't listed here, just e-mail the site. You can search for inventors and inventions by time, topic, or alphabetical order.
http://www.ZoomSchool.com/inventors/

4000 Years of Women in Science
The site includes biographies, references, and photographs of women involved in science and inventions.
http://www.astr.ua.edu/4000WS/4000WS.html

The National Gallery for America's Young Inventors
This site is a program established for the purpose of enshrining great inventions produced by America's youth. The National Gallery complements the efforts of the National Inventors Hall of Fame by inducting six young people in grades K–12 annually. In this way, the National Gallery is taking the great ideas of American youth and preserving them forever.
http://www.pafinc.com/gallery/