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OpenStax

Open Stax: Industrialization and Big Business, 1870 1900: Inventors of the Age

For Students 11th - 12th
In the Industrial Revolution, new products and inventions spurred the growth of big business. Learn about some of these inventions and the people who created them, for example, Alexander Graham Bell and Thomas Edison.
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Smithsonian Institution

Lemelson Center: Percy Spencer: Microwave Inventor

For Students 9th - 10th
Read about the moment Percy Spencer discovered how microwaves heated objects. This discovery led to the invention of the microwave oven.
Website
Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Mit: Inventing Modern America: Games

For Students 9th - 10th
Students are challenged to a five-question quiz about when certain objects are invented.
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Enchanted Learning

Enchanted Learning: Inventors & Inventions From the 1700s

For Students 3rd - 6th
Use this site to learn more about early inventors and inventions from the 18th century. This web page offers text and images on various inventors and their inventions. You can also access information about inventors and inventions from...
Article
Other

Ed Surge: Can Anyone Be an Inventor? Mit's Invention Education Officer Says Yes

For Students 9th - 10th
This article is part of The EdSurge Podcast. Today, there are plenty of middle and high school students who have developed solutions to major economic and social challenges, ranging from health care and transportation to agriculture and...
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Smithsonian Institution

Lemelson Center: Spark!lab: Inventor Profiles: Charlotte Cramer Sachs

For Students 3rd - 8th
Charlotte Cramer Sachs held the patents on many inventions. She invented quick baking products such as Joy muffin mixes, as well as accessories for dogs and musical games. One invention was a precursor to the retractable dog leash. A...
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Smithsonian Institution

Lemelson Center: Spark!lab: Inventor Profiles: Joseph B. Friedman

For Students 3rd - 8th
Joseph B. Friedman invented the bendable straw, which he patented in 1937. Read about his life here and the history of this famous invention.
Article
Teachnology

Teachnology: Inventors Teaching Theme

For Teachers Pre-K - 1st
A number of worksheets and lessons on inventors and inventing are available here to non-subscribers. There are also many links to other sites with additional materials, including to biographies of well known inventors.
Article
Teachnology

Teachnology: Inventors Teaching Theme

For Teachers Pre-K - 1st
A number of worksheets and lessons on inventors and inventing are available here to non-subscribers. There are also many links to other sites with additional materials, including to biographies of well known inventors.
Website
Smithsonian Institution

Lemelson Center: Invention Stories

For Students 9th - 10th
Six categories of inventions highlight the inventors in those categories and describe their sometimes world-changing inventions. Other inventions are not so critical, but nonetheless fascinating.
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Smithsonian Institution

Lemelson Center: Spark!lab: Inventor Profiles: Charles F. Brannock

For Students 9th - 10th
Charles F. Brannock's most famous invention was the Brannock Device. It is used worldwide today for measuring feet in order to determine proper shoe size. Original drawings for it can be viewed here, along with a biographical profile of...
Website
Other

African American Inventors and Inventions: Elijah Mc Coy the Real Mc Coy

For Students 9th - 10th
A brief biography of Elijah McCoy and a description of one of his inventions that made factory machinery run smoothly.
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Smithsonian Institution

Lemelson Center: Invention Features: Lewis Latimer

For Students 9th - 10th
Smithsonian site features the life and many accomplishments of Lewis Latimer, the famous African-American inventor.
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Science Struck

Science Struck: A List of Famous Inventors

For Students 9th - 10th
A long list of famous inventors with some biographical information and descriptions of their inventions.
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Other

American Artifacts: The Imaginative Inventor

For Students 9th - 10th
Just for fun. A website with a list of strange inventions by would-be entrepreneurs. Click on any to see a picture and description of the device.
Unit Plan
CommonLit

Common Lit: Teenage Inventor Alexis Lewis Thinks That Kids Have the Solutions

For Students 7th - 8th
A learning module that begins with "Teenage Inventor Alexis Lewis Thinks That Kids Have the Solutions" by Megan Gambino, accompanied by guided reading questions, assessment questions, and discussion questions. The text can be printed as...
Article
Other

Positive.news: Children's Inventions to Make the World a Better Place

For Students K - 1st
Children's imaginations are infinite - so could they help draw up the ambitious projects that we need to fight the world's challenges? A group was asked to design inventions to make society a better place. Here's how they responded.
Website
Vassar College

1896: Inventions

For Students 9th - 10th
A brief recounting of the influx of inventions in the late 19th century that flooded the market. Of particular interest is the description of the use of hot air balloons.
Website
Smithsonian Institution

Lemelson Center: Invention Process

For Students 9th - 10th
Through a number of articles, stories and research we learn about the invention process, including communicating your ideas, staying resilient when things go wrong.
Website
Library of Congress

Loc: Everyday Mysteries: Who "Invented" the Tv Dinner?

For Students 9th - 10th
Ever wonder who "invented" the TV dinner? This article provides a discussion of the people and companies involved in the creation of complete frozen meals starting in the 1940s and ending in 1954 when Swanson's frozen meals appeared and...
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Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Mit: Invention of the Week: Alexander Graham Bell

For Students 3rd - 8th
This site provides a biographical sketch of Alexander Graham Bell and his inventions. Find out about Bell's patents in addition to the telephone.
Interactive
PBS

Pbs Kids: How to Be an Inventor

For Students K - 1st
Part of the Real Stories series from "Martha Speaks," this read-along story teaches young children how easy it is to be an inventor.
Website
Great Idea Finder

The Great Idea Finder: Qwerty Keyboard Invention

For Students 9th - 10th
Where did the idea of the QWERTY keyboard come from? Read about typewriter inventor, Christopher Sholes, and how he came up with his idea of a new keyboard design way back in 1875. Additional links to related sites, fascinating facts,...
Handout
Great Idea Finder

The Great Idea Finder: Invention of the Microwave Oven

For Students 9th - 10th
Site includes fascinating facts about the invention of the microwave oven by Perry Spencer in 1945.

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