TeachersFirst 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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Gajitz Science - Gajitz
Grades
6 to 12This site includes advertising.
tag(s): cells (82), engineering (141), inventors and inventions (89), medicine (52)
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 a 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 include it in your emergency sub plans so students can find and explain the 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 about a branch of science that interests them after exploring this site?You must be registered and logged in to add items to your favorites.
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Design Squad Global - PBS Kids GO!
Grades
4 to 9tag(s): engineering (141), inventors and inventions (89), sound (72)
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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DocsTeach - National Archives Foundation
Grades
4 to 12tag(s): civil rights (223), congress (37), courts (26), first ladies (4), immigration (86), inventors and inventions (89), Juneteenth (33), lewis and clark (16), presidents (151), primary sources (143), slavery (79), womens suffrage (64), world war 1 (87), world war 2 (168)
In the Classroom
Select a document, photograph, or artifact from DocsTeach and display it without providing background information. Have students act as historians, making observations and inferences about what the source reveals before learning its historical context. Students can use the site's Compare and Contrast tool to analyze two primary sources from the same historical event or time period. Have them identify similarities, differences, and what each source contributes to their understanding. Have students select primary sources around a historical theme, such as immigration, the American Revolution, civil rights, or westward expansion. They can create a digital exhibit using ThingLink, reviewed here with titles, descriptions, and explanations of why each source is important to understanding the topic.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Lighting a Revolution - Smithsonian
Grades
5 to 8tag(s): 20th century (171), electricity (63), inventors and inventions (89), light (61)
In the Classroom
Use this resource to frame a student invention unit based on the five stages detailed on the site. Focus the invention process on current or future needs brainstormed by students in class.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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