Inventions Teacher Resources

5th graders will gain an understanding of how, what, and why people invent tools. This PowerPoint provides a complete description of what tools are, types of tools, why we make tools and what impact they have had on society. There are...

Students explore invention and unveiling of world's first Ferris wheel, analyze photographs and poster of first Ferris wheel, and discuss engineering achievements of Ferris wheel, including how it worked, how it was built, and its...

Explore the inventions of the past with a project on ancient tools. After reading an article about hunting during the Archaic period, the Late Prehistoric period, and the Historic period, kids fill in a cause-and-effect chart about the...

Use this lesson plan to discuss inventions that have changed your class's world and have impacted society. Middle schoolers investigate important inventions of their time and design an invention in a simulated business atmosphere. Modify...

With the help from an interactive timeline, scholars discover the time and order in which inventions came to be—popular items from eyeglasses to the compact disc. 

How did the vast Roman society contribute to science? See the wonders of the Appian Way all while examining the Roman thought process during video six in the History of Science series. The narrator compares the Roman view of doing...

Ziggurats, cuneiform writing, the Tower of Babel, hieroglyphics, pyramids, the Great Wall. Launch a unit on ancient cultures, with a presentation that introduces viewers to ancient Mesopotamia, Babylonia, Sumer, Egypt, Indus, and China....

A scientific video focuses on ten famous inventions and the person credited with inventing each one. Then it describes the bigger picture of each invention and how it relied on those before them and around them. 

While a woman didn't invent the parasol, three women received patents for their improvements to the original design of umbrellas. In the first of a two-part series on inventive women, class members investigate the patent system to...

Young scholars investigate inventions and the impact they can have on people. In this technology instructional activity, students research Thomas Edison and discuss how the invention of the light bulb impacted others. Young scholars...

Young scholars write a rap or hip-hop lyric about the life of a famous Black American. They explore famous Black Americans in history and explore how the rap form compares to other forms of poetic expression.

When did Aboriginal tribes arrive in Australia? When were the Sydney Olympic Games hosted? Review some major events in Australian history with this timeline activity learning exercise.

Young scholars research and discuss the history of the telephone, radio, and light bulb. For this invention history lesson, students access Internet sites to explore the inventors and the invention of the telephone, the radio, and the...

Medieval Chinese scientists were the masters of invention! Explore the wonders of the Far East through the eighth installment in a 15-part History of Science series. The resource covers contributions to science and technology by dynasty,...

If you thought the Wright brothers invented flight, you'd be wrong. Scholars learn how Otto Lilienthal used gliders to simulate flight before the Wright brothers. The Real Engineering video then explains how the Wright brothers perfected...

Is it a calendar? A religious symbol? A political statement? One thing for certain is that Aztec sun stone designs remain an important symbol in Mexican cultural art. Young artists craft their own Aztec Sun design incorporating ideas...

The Medieval Islamicate World was truly a world of wonders! Clocks with gears, armillary spheres ... and robots that played music? Journey to ancient Baghdad, the center of science and math with the seventh video in a History of Science...

The earliest movies were a whopping one minute long! While the practice has evolved quite a bit over time, the invention of the movie camera was significant in its time. A video describes how not only movie cameras but also radio and...

Students research inventions and the impact it has on society. In this technology lesson, students read a timeline of significant inventions throughout history and identify ways the inventions impacted society. Students develop their own...

Who was the originator of the Blood Bank? What fur and grain trader founded the city of Chicago? Who invented the ironing board and lawn sprinklers? A 10-clue matching activity launches a scavenger hunt for information about famous, yet...

The Declaration of Independence was published in 1776. The Declaration of Sentiments and Resolutions, modeled after the Declaration of Independence, was drafted and read by Elizabeth Cady Stanton at the Seneca Falls Convention in 1848....

Sandwich: a delicious meal stacked with meats, cheeses, and veggies, or a parish in England? How about both! The sandwich was invented in—yes, you got it—Sandwich, by John Montagu. Watch this creative and inventive video that gives a...

Ever heard of cyanoacrylates? Encourage class members to stick with an engaging resource that will glue their attention to a video that traces the part this family of chemicals played in the history of Super Glue.