Website
Rutgers University

Thomas Edison Papers: Edison's Patents

For Students 9th - 10th
This site offers an exhaustive list of 1,093 patents granted to Thomas Edison. There is also a graphic representing his annual output available. Hyperlinks to much more information. Included are the actual drawings of inventions...
Handout
Rutgers University

Thomas Edison Papers: Biography of Thomas Edison

For Students 9th - 10th
The first person to make the storage battery practical, with 147 patents, Edison's life is a testimony to invention. This biography, in outline form, is in two parts; go to 1879 site after this.
Handout
Other

Edison Birthplace Museum: Patents Granted to Thomas Edison

For Students 9th - 10th
Thomas Edison is one of the world's greatest inventors and has been responsible for more inventions than any other inventor. Here is a chronological listing of the over 1,000 patents he was granted during his lifetime.
Website
The Henry Ford

The Henry Ford: Thomas A. Edison and the Menlo Park Laboratory

For Students 9th - 10th
This site, presented by the Henry Ford Museum and Greenfield Village, offers a peek into the life and inventions of Thomas Edison. Content is focused mainly on Edison's Menlo Park Laboratory and his invention of the first practical...
Handout
Curated OER

National Park Service: Thomas Edison National Historical Park: Edison Biography

For Students 9th - 10th
Here is a very detailed biography of Thomas Edison ranging from his boyhood and his work as a telegrapher, moving on to his invention of the phonograph and incandescent light bulb, and finally, a description of his laboratories where he...
Primary
US National Archives

Our Documents: Thomas Edison's Patent Application for the Light Bulb

For Students 9th - 10th
This resource includes a copy of the original diagram and application that Thomas Edison submitted for the electric light bulb. Along with the interactive pictures you can access a typed transcript, larger images, a downloadable .PDF...
Website
Smithsonian Institution

Lemelson Center: Thomas Edison's Inventive Life

For Students 9th - 10th
This site is a complete resource for learning about Edison's life, his inventions, and electricity. If you like experimenting, there are instructions included for how to make your own light bulb. Good photos.
Lesson Plan
PBS

Pbs Learning Media: Thomas Edison: Inventor and Entrepreneur

For Teachers 3rd - 8th
Through a video and primary source activities, young scholars will learn about Edison's remarkable business of innovation and some of his 1,093 patented devices.
Website
Other

Earliest Voices: Thomas Edison

For Students 9th - 10th
This resource offers historic voice recordings of Thomas Edison. There is a recording of animal sounds, and a speech given at an electrical exhibition in 1908. A biography and downloadable images of him are also included.
Primary
Library of Congress

Loc: Early Motion Pictures, Sound Records of Edison Companies

For Students 1st - 9th
The Library of Congress provides information on Thomas Edison's profound contribution to the music industry.
Lesson Plan
PBS

Pbs Learning Media: What Edison Teaches Us About Success

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
In this interactive lesson, learners examine Thomas Edison's character traits and how they contributed to his becoming one of the greatest inventors in history. In this interactive lesson, students watch videos to gather evidence about...
Unknown Type
Stanford University

Beyond the Bubble: Edison and the Kansas Housewife

For Teachers 9th - 10th
[Free Registration/Login Required] Students read a letter from a Mrs. W.C. Lathrop to Thomas Edison thanking him for inventing her electric appliances and making her life easier. They are then presented with some contextual facts, and...
Handout
Rutgers University

Edison's Papers: Edison's Patents: Batteries

For Students 9th - 10th
A full listing of all Edison's battery patents. Not just titles and numbers, but Adobe Acrobat copies of the entire set of drawings and text from each patent application. This is heirloom stuff. With the available magnification, you can...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

National Park Service: The Invention Factory:thomas Edison's Laboratories

For Teachers 6th - 8th
This Teaching With Historic Places lesson plan about Thomas Edison's laboratories is filled with maps, readings, critical thinking questions, and photographs related to Edison's labs and inventions. This site explains and details the...
Handout
Smithsonian Institution

Lemelson Center: Thomas Edison's Places of Invention

For Students 9th - 10th
An article by Paul Israel from the Prototype newsletter discusses the various laboratories used by Thomas Edison as he was developing his inventions.
eBook
Other

Edison:life and Inventions/motion Pictures

For Students 9th - 10th
This page is part of an online text of a book published in 1929 by Dyer and Martin on the life and work of inventor Thomas Edison. Discusses Edison's role in the development of motion pictures, but be sure to view the rest of the book...
Website
Other

History of Recording Technology: Edison's Invention of the Phonograph

For Students 9th - 10th
Click through the pages on this site to read about Edison's development of the phonograph as well as a discussion of Edison's rivals who were seeking to develop a similar product. Read about the changes in the ways to record sound as the...
Website
Rutgers University

Rutgers: The Thomas Edison Papers

For Students 9th - 10th
Links to copies of papers written by Thomas Edison. Also includes biographical information and copies of his patents and companies.
Article
A&E Television

History.com: 6 Key Inventions by Thomas Edison

For Students 9th - 10th
Edison's genius was improving on others' technologies and making them more practical for the general public. Thomas Edison applied for his first patent in 1868, when he was just 21 years old. The famous inventor's first brainchild was...
Article
Famous Scientists

Famous Scientists: Thomas Alva Edison

For Students 9th - 10th
Meet the inventor of the phonograph, the motion picture camera, and the long-lasting, practical electric light bulb, Thomas Edison.
Unit Plan
CommonLit

Common Lit: The Life and Achievements of Thomas Edison

For Students 5th - 6th
A learning module that begins with "The Life and Achievements of Thomas Edison" by Jessica McBirney, accompanied by guided reading questions, assessment questions, and discussion questions. The text can be printed as a PDF or assigned...
Handout
Other

Kidcyber: Thomas Alva Edison

For Students 3rd - 8th
A biographical overview of the life and many inventions of Thomas Alva Edison.
Lesson Plan
National Endowment for the Humanities

Neh: Edsit Ement: Thomas Edison's Inventions in 1900s and Today: From New to You!

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
In this lesson plan, students will consider "Thomas Edison's Inventions in the 1900s and Today: From "New" to You!." The plan includes worksheets and other student materials that can be found under the resource tab.
Handout
Energy for Sustainable Development

Esd Bulgaria: Kids & Energy: Energy Pioneers: Thomas Alva Edison

For Students 3rd - 8th
A profile of Thomas Alva Edison, who lived from 1847 to 1931, an American who made many important inventions, such as the electric light bulb. A timeline of his inventions is provided here.

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