World Intellectual Property Organization
Learn from the Past, Create the Future: Inventions and Patents
3D printers, selfie sticks, smart watches. GPS, self-driving cars, YouTube. Imagine life without inventions. Believe it or not, these items were all invented in the last 10 years. Inventions, and the inventors responsible for them,...
Curated OER
Inventions- The Impact
Students investigate inventions and the impact they can have on people. In this technology lesson, students research Thomas Edison and discuss how the invention of the light bulb impacted others. Students sketch out an invention they...
Curated OER
Invent It!
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...
Curated OER
Inventions-The Impact
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...
Curated OER
Innovative Inventions
Help your scholars get a grasp on the chronology of the Industrial Revolution with this "Innovative Inventions" worksheet. They discover what year various items were invented, and then create a timeline placing each invention and...
Curated OER
Inventions Over Time
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...
Curriculum Corner
African American Inventors
Celebrate Black History Month with a packet of materials on African American inventors. Readers discover several inventors' character traits, their inventions, and their lives. They even have the opportunity to conduct further research...
Curated OER
Teach Inventions with PowerPoint
Students research famous inventors and what they invented. In this technology lesson, students gather facts about a specific invention and create a PowerPoint slideshow about it. Students practice adding in animation and color to the...
Curated OER
Feel Empowered! Teaching About Female Inventors
Inspire children to learn and create by teaching the history of female inventors during National Inventors Month.
Curated OER
Calling All Inventors: Celebrate National Inventors Month
Start off the school year by engaging learners in a creative study of inventors and their inventions.
Up To Ten
The History of Inventions
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.
Curated OER
Tools, Technologies and Inventions through the years
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...
History Alive!
Thomas Edison: Inventor, Lecturer and Prankster
It's no small wonder that a lightbulb has come to represent a bright idea. The light bulb, the bright idea of Thomas Edison, was just one of his over 1,000 inventions. A teacher's guide introduces young audiences to works of the man who...
National Woman's History Museum
Inventive Women - Part 1
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...
PBS
George Washington Carver: Scientist, Inventor, and Teacher
Using video clips along with primary and secondary documents, scholars analyze the life of George Washington Carver, one of America's best scientists and inventors. Class members then create music, posters, and skits about this amazing...
PBS
Inventions
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...
Read Works
Edison Tried and Tried Again
How many times did it take Thomas Edison to invent a successful working lightbulb? Young learners read a short passage about this famous inventor and his determination in getting an idea to work successfully. Then, pupils respond to four...
American Institute of Physics
African American Inventors in History
A two-part lesson introduces young historians to the work of famous African American inventors. Groups first research and develop a presentation of an inventor that includes biographical information and information about one of their...
PBS
Alexander Graham Bell: Scientist, Inventor, and Teacher
Hello? Hello? Scholars investigate the impact Alexander Graham Bell's telephone had on the American landscape. Using drawings, video clips, and primary sources, the mind of the inventor comes to light as pupils dream of new inventions to...
Curated OER
Inventions in Everyday Life
Students identify and solve problems as they modify the design of an everyday household item. They gather and analyze information and work in collaborative teams to create a design plan for a new product.
Curated OER
History of the Telephone, Radio, and Light Bulb
Students research and discuss the history of the telephone, radio, and light bulb. In this invention history lesson, students access Internet sites to explore the inventors and the invention of the telephone, the radio, and the light...
Captain Planet Foundation
George Washington Carver and the Sweet Potato
Learn about George Washington Carver's important contributions to agriculture by studying the sweet potato. First graders read about the inventor's observations and prepare sweet potato slips for the class garden. Additionally, they...
Curated OER
Who Gets to Invent and How Do Inventors Change Our Lives?
Students examine the way various inventions have changed their lives. As a class, they create a timeline of the most important inventions during their lifetime and another timeline of how old they were when it was invented. ...
Curated OER
Inventions and How They Impact Our World
Students select an invention from a list, observe the invention for one whole day to determine how their selected invention impacts their daily life. They share their observations as a class and describe their experiences.