TeachersFirst's Inventors and Inventions Resources
Invent and Innovate! This collection of reviewed resources from TeachersFirst is selected to help teachers, parents, and students learn about inventors and inventions. Use these resources for science or social studies lessons and activities about innovation and invention, in observance of National Inventors' Day (celebrated on February 11, Thomas Edison's birthday), or at any time during the school year. Whether you are simply learning about the history of invention or planning a schoolwide Invention Convention, these resources will provide inspiration and project possibilities.
Explore all of TeachersFirst's resources tagged inventors and inventions for more ideas.
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Young Ben Franklin - Gen-Z Media
Grades
4 to 12
tag(s): colonial america (149), declaration of independence (19), inventors and inventions (147), constitution (138), franklin (17), podcasts (130),
In the Classroom
Take advantage of the many free materials available on this site to engage students when learning about Benjamin Franklin, American History, or inventors. Adapt the choice and explore boards to fit your student's interests and abilities. For example, replace the timeline on the choice board with one created using MyLens, reviewed here. If time isn't available to complete the entire listening guide, copy individual slides to use as part of a listening or writing center. As a culminating activity, extend learning by asking students to use the podcast as a model for researching and learning about other famous Americans. Have them share their learning as part of a multimedia presentation created using Canva Docs, reviewed here or by creating a comic strip presentation using Canva's Comic Strip Templates, reviewed here.You must be registered and logged in to add items to your favorites.
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Take a Virtual Field Trip - Google Arts and Culture
Grades
3 to 12tag(s): flight (53), fossils (60), van gogh (10), climate change (130), earthquakes (69), migration (88), earth (344), martin luther king (72), rainforests (27), evolution (129), machines (48), romans (57), chemicals (67), moon (117), adaptations (28), railroads (18), south africa (19), aviation (57), central america (21), shakespeare (221), women (203), coral (24), italy (22), amazon (14), inventors and inventions (147), virtual field trips (127), endangered species (56), california (40), molecules (67), dinosaurs (80), presidents (201), colors (114), architecture (113), animals (498), mexico (50), ecosystems (132), medieval (47), archeology (42), world war 1 (102), first ladies (6), insects (123), volcanoes (100), africa (273), peru (8), magnetism (56), france (62), respiration (22),
In the Classroom
Be sure to take advantage of the guide included on this site on how to take a virtual field trip. In addition, the guide offers suggestions and lesson plans for making the most of virtual field trips. Use any of the included field trips as an engaging introduction to many different topics. For example, several different field trips take viewers under the oceans and use these excrsions to introduce a unit on ocean animals, climate change, or oceans worldwide. Use Figjam, reviewed here for students to share notes, questions, and information learned throughout the activity. Instead of assigning a typical research project, ask students to create a virtual field trip using Google My Maps, reviewed here. Learn the basics of creating with Google My Maps by viewing the archive of a November 2021 OK2Ask virtual workshop, reviewed here.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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BlackPast - BlackPast.org
Grades
6 to 12tag(s): STEM (353), biographies (141), sports (157), journalism (113), civil rights (273), racism (90), branches of government (84), inventors and inventions (147), african american (210),
In the Classroom
BlackPast is a must-have for any social studies classroom. Bookmark this resource to use when learning about Black history, African-American biographies, important events, and more. Consider creating a Padlet, reviewed here, to save different articles from BlackPast for students to easily access specific information. Use the shelf option to divide your Padlet into sections by date, topic, or events. Padlet also has a timeline feature when creating biographies or highlighting important dates within a specific time. Ask students to create blogs using Edublogs, reviewed here, to share information learned from this site. As students prepare to "show what they know," modify their technology use by asking them to use Sway, reviewed here, as a presentation tool and include images, videos, and student writing to share their learning.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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MIT Full STEAM Ahead - MIT
Grades
3 to 12tag(s): makerspace (50), design (159), engineering (200), game based learning (255), STEM (353), sounds (84), inventors and inventions (147), space (321), diseases (98), earth (344),
In the Classroom
As students participate in the activities and lessons shared on this site, utilize the many features of Google Documents or Microsoft Word to gather information, and collaborate with peers. Use spreadsheet tools to record findings and create graphs to evaluate the results of experiments. Engage students in the learning process by adding questions and comments to the videos in the learning packages using edpuzzle, reviewed here. Ask students to use Sway, reviewed here, to share the products of their learning activities. Add text, images, videos, and more to create multimedia presentations. Use the learning packages to find activities and resources to incorporate into your current learning units. Be sure to check out the interactives (games) that focus on problem-solving and collaboration skills.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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kidcyber - Shirley Sydenham and Ron Thomas
Grades
K to 6tag(s): dictionaries (69), earth (344), australia (42), animals (498), space (321), aircraft (36), inventors and inventions (147), stars (117), sports (157), planets (200), nutrition (234),
In the Classroom
Include this resource with other content when teaching science concepts. Include a link to specific sections of the site for use as non-fiction reading content. Instead of having students draw a poster to share information about animals or plants, enhance learning by asking them to annotate an image using Google Drawings, reviewed here. Google Drawings allows you to annotate an image with links to videos, text, websites, and more. Not familiar with Google Drawings? Watch an archived OK2Ask session to learn how to use OK2Ask Google Drawings, here. Extend your students' knowledge by setting up a Global Virtual Classroom, reviewed here with a classroom in a different part of the world to compare and contrast your environments.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Smithsonian Learning Lab - The Smithsonian Center for Learning and Digital Access
Grades
4 to 12tag(s): shakespeare (221), volcanoes (100), oceans (243), Learning Management Systems (34), Teacher Utilities (201), explorers (107), inventors and inventions (147), scientists (93), architecture (113), animals (498), aviation (57), dinosaurs (80), civil war (215), black history (176), art history (128), images (487),
In the Classroom
The Smithsonian Learning Lab is a must-add to your list of classroom bookmarks! Search for collections and information throughout the year on all topics. Add a link to classroom computers for the entire site or specific collections. Be sure to take advantage of the many features of this site to create customized collections, then have students add additional resources. Have students create quizzes for review of topics. Enhance student learning by challenging them to create a simple infographic sharing their findings using Canva Infographic Maker, reviewed here.Comments
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USPTO - United States Patent and Trademark Office - United States Patent and Trademark Office
Grades
3 to 12tag(s): video (457), inventors and inventions (147), STEM (353), crafts (80), sound (135), sports (157), digital citizenship (139),
In the Classroom
Whether an elementary, middle, or high school teacher you'll find ideas for building model rockets and more. Use an interactive whiteboard or projector and start by viewing the video on the home page titled Extraordinary Innovations. Or, in your blended or flipped class have students watch the video at home and enhance their learning by using playposit, reviewed here, to take notes, make comments, or ask questions to document what they learned from the video. Be sure to have a small or whole group discussion about what they learned from the video using their notes & comments the next day! At the end of your lesson or unit on patents and trademarks, transform learning by challenging students to create a timeline for the invention of the snowboard, or motorcycles, or another topic of interest. Why not modify classroom technology and make this an interactive timeline with music, photos, videos, and more using Timeline JS, reviewed here.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Highbrow - Artem Zavyalov & Jane Limanskaya
Grades
7 to 12tag(s): endangered species (56), logic (326), authors (183), women (203), equations (224), business (86), architecture (113), weather (318), poetry (377), psychology (89), 20th century (85), numbers (259), human body (172), short stories (35), mental math (38), photography (233), differentiation (129), medicine (84), surrealism (6), greeks (49), financial literacy (129), inventors and inventions (147),
In the Classroom
Highbrow is perfect for differentiated learning. Allow students to choose their own topic and sign up for a course. When complete, choose another topic and start a new course. Modify classroom technology by having students create commercials for finished courses using Powtoon, reviewed here, and share them using a tool such as TeacherTube, reviewed here. Challenge students to create a course after a unit of study as a final assessment. Be sure to include this site on your class webpage for students to access both in and outside of class for personal use.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Da Vinci - The Genius - The Museum of Science
Grades
6 to 12tag(s): renaissance (62), italy (22), leonardo davinci (10), artists (134), inventors and inventions (147),
In the Classroom
This site is perfect for use on your interactive whiteboard or with a projector. Explore the different portions together during your studies of the Renaissance, inventors, or artists such as Leonardo da Vinci. Share a link to this site on your class webpage for students to explore at home, or to use in your blended class activities. Add a link on classroom computers for use during computer centers. Have students replace paper and pen notes and take digital notes about what they are learnng using a tool like SimpleNote, reviewed here. Enhance students' learning by using Fakebook, reviewed here, to create a "fake" page similar in style to Facebook about Leonardo da Vinci or other Renaissance artists. Extend student learning by challenging individuals and small groups to take one of the concepts they learned from Leonardo and apply it to something from today's world. Use a bulletin board tool like Lino, reviewed here, to record and save student ideas. With Lino you can create stickies with images, commenting, videos, and more. After individuals and small groups have devoloped their art, invention, etc., have them present their learning and their invention, art, etc. to peers using one of these multimedia tools: Click the tool name to access the review: Genially, Microsoft PowerPoint Online, Animatron, Renderforest, and Canva Inforgraphic Maker.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Story of the Web - Jack Schofield
Grades
5 to 12tag(s): inventors and inventions (147), computers (163), internet safety (210),
In the Classroom
Story of the Web is perfect for use on your interactive whiteboard or projector in a unit on technology and invention or in a computer literacy class. Share this site with students who have grown up on the Internet to provide an understanding of how quickly technology has developed. Compare it to the development of a human being over 25+ years! Have students create a simple infographic sharing their findings using Venngage, reviewed here. Use an online tool such as Interactive Two Circle Venn Diagram, reviewed here, comparing communication 25+ years ago to 2018.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Community Science Workshop Network - Community Initiatives
Grades
K to 12tag(s): STEM (353), gravity (75), inventors and inventions (147), musical instruments (82), sound (135), plants (245), engineering (200),
In the Classroom
Use these activities to create contraptions for students to manipulate in class. As students use a manipulative, collect their questions about what they observe or wonder about the contraption's motion and characteristics. Students can research the science behind the object or motion. Use class discussion to create understanding about basic scientific principles. Be sure to include a link to this site on your classroom computer or website. Students can use these activities to teach concepts to other students in their class. Many of these activities make great demonstrations as an introduction to a science concept and for uncovering student misconceptions. Expand what you ask students to do by using creative writing, reading, creating Infographics, or learning correct ways to research and report findings about the subject matter. A suggested easy to use infographic creator is Canva Infographic Maker, reviewed here.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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GE Focus Forward - GE & Cinelan.com
Grades
6 to 12tag(s): robotics (43), nutrition (234), mental health (43), solar energy (50), oceans (243), environment (462), medicine (84), trees (37), video (457), inventors and inventions (147), STEM (353),
In the Classroom
Use this site as an anticipatory set or "activator" to introduce a unit or lesson on a projector or interactive whiteboard. Have students explore this site independently or in small groups. There is one film about sanitation that refers to "poop," so you may want to avoid classroom giggles from less mature students by setting the tone for scientific viewing. Use as any part of a career unit, as a look at explorers and innovators, or when discussing character education. Be sure to include this site on your class web page for students to access both in and outside of class for further practice. Challenge students to choose a topic to further explore and create a multimedia presentation using one of the many TeachersFirst Edge tools reviewed here. Some tool suggestions are (click on the tool name to access the review): Infogram, Marq (formerly Lucidpress), Powtoon, and Vibby.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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CurriConnects Book List - Inventors and Inventions - TeachersFirst
Grades
K to 12tag(s): book lists (219), reading lists (134), inventors and inventions (147),
In the Classroom
Build student literacy skills, reinforce what students are learning about Inventions, and help students build the important reading strategy of connecting what they read to prior (classroom!) knowledge. Share this link on your class web page or wiki so students can select independent reading books to accompany your unit on Inventions. Don't forget to share the list with the school and local libraries so they can bring in some of the books on interlibrary loan. CurriConnects are a great help for teachers who have lost school library/media specialists due to budget cuts.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Museum of Obsolete Objects - MoooJvM
Grades
6 to 12tag(s): inventors and inventions (147),
In the Classroom
Use as a introductory video into science and technology. Identify the science understanding and concepts needed to change the technologies. Brainstorm other technologies that could be added to this list from the various decades. Brainstorm together using a tool such as Mindmeister, reviewed here. Challenge cooperative learning groups to investigate a specific decade and determine what was a new invention then but is no longer used today. Have students create slideshows using Slides, reviewed here. Display these on a blog or wiki for students to review and comment. Assign students to do a written or recorded interview of those who have used these old technologies to find out how life has changed before and after the technology.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Do Try This at Home: Invention at Play - Smithsonian Museum of National History
Grades
K to 6tag(s): design (159), problem solving (407), inventors and inventions (147), biographies (141), creativity (186), collaboration (121),
In the Classroom
Create a link to the site on classroom computers for students to explore the games. Share the site with parents on your classroom website or blog as a resource for using play as a learning tool. Share the site at conferences or parent meetings as a resource for developing learning skills through play. Include the inventor biographies as a resource for students when researching inventors.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Great Inventions, Great Inventors - edinformatics.com
Grades
4 to 12This site includes advertising.
tag(s): inventors and inventions (147),
In the Classroom
Find information for science and technology reports on this site. Allow students to view the dates of many of the inventions to determine what scientific principle was just known to push technological thinking. For younger students, create a timeline of inventions to enhance learning and determine the impact of science, economy, and society on inventions. Use a site such as Sutori, reviewed here, that can include images, text, and collaboration. Ask older students to choose an invention and research other forms of that model, alternatives before and after, and what we are using today. Discuss environmental impacts, how the invention changed society, and other impacts.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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The Wilbur and Orville Wright Papers - Library of Congress
Grades
6 to 12tag(s): flight (53), wright brothers (33), inventors and inventions (147), aviation (57),
In the Classroom
Students doing research on the Wright brothers will find this site invaluable. Have students work in cooperative learning groups and research a specific topic found at this site. Exchange paper and pen notes by having students to take notes with an online tool like Simplenote, reviewed here. Have them share the info they learned with their small group. Tell students to be sure to save the URL to share their notes and questions. Simplenote allows you to access and update across all devices. Enhance learning by challenging students to modify their technology use and create a multimedia presentation using a tool such as Zeemaps, reviewed here. Zeemaps allows students to create audio recordings AND choose a location (on a map) where the story takes place. Alternatively, students could use Adobe Creative Cloud Express for Education, reviewed here, to enhance their learning and transform technology use by creating an interactive poster for their presentation.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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The 50 Worst Inventions - Time Magazine
Grades
4 to 12tag(s): inventors and inventions (147),
In the Classroom
Challenge students to create a list of useless inventions or to invent one of their own. Display the slide show on your interactive whiteboard or projector and discuss if students agree with a product's placement on the list. Generate a list of characteristics that would keep an invention OFF this list! Have students create commercials advertising their new product (or the one they researched). Enhance learning by challenging students to create a video commercial. Modify classroom technology use by usingFlexClip, reviewed here. FlexClip is designed to allow you to create short animated or explainer videos to share on YouTube and other social media sites. Share using a site such as SchoolTube, reviewed here.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Gajitz Science - Gajitz
Grades
6 to 12tag(s): inventors and inventions (147), medicine (84), engineering (200), cells (145),
In the Classroom
Share selected discoveries or a science-in-real-life scenario at least weekly on a projector or interactive whiteboard. Watch the site for real world examples of your current unit or award extra credit to students who lurk on this site to find such connections. Just as your social studies colleagues assign students to write up a current event each week, you can assign students to write a blog post or brief explanation of a recent find on your class wiki. Be sure to include this link on your class web page for students to access both in and out of class, and be sure to include it in your emergency sub plans for students to find and explain an accomplishment of a real scientist found here. If you do a unit on science careers, this is a definite source for student projects. Why not have students create an interactive infographic using a tool like Genially, reviewed here, on a branch of science that interests them after exploring this site?Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Design Squad Global - PBS Kids GO!
Grades
4 to 9tag(s): engineering (200), sound (135), inventors and inventions (147),
In the Classroom
The possibilities at this site are "inventive." Visit the games site to learn about sound and play an interactive "string thing." Have students work in cooperative learning groups to recreate the building activities. Share the video clips (or interactives) on your projector or interactive whiteboard. Have your class complete one of the "real life" challenges together. If you can't do it during the competition months, go back and try one of the past competitions. Document it on a class wiki, then invite next year's class to do it even better by learning from "experience." Before you know it, kids will walk in the first day of school and ask when they get to try the challenge.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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