DocsTeach
Patent Analysis: Alexander Graham Bell's Telephone
Believe it or not, the plugs and wires on Alexander Graham Bell's patent application for telegraph improvements has a direct connection to devices today. Young historians examine the fine details of the patent application. After they...
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, are...
Curated OER
The Invention of the Telephone
Students study the history of the telephone and its inventor. In this communications lesson students complete a tuning fork experiment to further demonstrate how sound is produced.
Curated OER
History of the Telephone, Radio, and Light Bulb
Students 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 light...
Curated OER
Economics Lesson: The Real McCoy
Students research the origination of the expression "The Real McCoy." In this economics research activity, students read the book The Real McCoy. Students examine Elijah McCoy and his invention of the oil cup and how it relates to the...
Curated OER
Inventions: Third Grade Science
This inventions PowerPoint includes age-appropriate text and information about what an invention is, the planning process for developing inventions, and common factors of successful inventions. Several short biographies with text and...
Curated OER
Alexander Graham Bell's Patent for the Telephone and Thomas Edison's Patent for the Electric Lamp
High schoolers read a short biographical account about Bell and student B about Edison. Ask each pair to exchange information and determine what qualities these inventors shared. Ask students if they think all inventors share these...
K12 Reader
African American Inventors: Lewis Latimer
Celebrate Black History Month getting to know more about Lewis Latimer. Here, scholars read about his life and success, then apply their new-found knowledge by responding to questions about the text with short answers.
New Jersey Historical Commission and New Jersey Council for the Humanities
Thomas Edison: The Wizard of Menlo Park
What would change in your daily life due to a power outage? Here, learners explore the inventions brought to us by the one and only, Thomas Edison, and imagine a day without them. Scholars take part in a grand conversation and write a...
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...
Curated OER
Applied Science - Built Environment Pre Lab (Morse Code)
Students study communication. In this telegraph lesson, students examine Morse code and the composition of an elementary telegraph circuit. They listen to a presentation and try to create Morse Code messages on a worksheet. This lesson...