Who Invented It? When? Chinese Inventions

Sandwich: a delicious meal stacked with meats, cheeses, and veggies, or a parish in England? How about both! The sandwich was invented in—yes, you got it—Sandwich, by John Montagu. Watch this creative and inventive video that gives a...

Sitting in a soda parlor, Joseph Freedman notices the difficulty his young daughter has trying to drink from the paper straw in her milkshake. This sparks the invention of a bendy straw. Watch to learn more about this small but widely...

There's nothing like the Wild Wild West! Scholars investigate the American Frontier through the eyes of Kit Carson. To complete the first installment of a three-part series, they use presentations, a short video, and primary and...

Tumbling tumbleweeds! Scholars work with video clips, primary and secondary documents, and song lyrics to uncover life in the Old West. They examine song's lyrics to uncover myths told in the 1930s about life in the Wild West. 

Anita's iconic rooftop ode to American life in West Side Story is the focus of a lesson on immigration. As class members listen to "America," they follow along with printed lyrics, and discuss whether they agree with Anita's...

One stick or two? Water based or milk based? Who would have thought there is so much drama in the history of the popsicle? Check out the story behind Frank Epperson's tasty treat.

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...

Go West, young man! Scholars use PBS video clips, slide shows, and interactive materials to create a picture of Manifest Destiny in the American West. Using a variety of primary and secondary sources, young historians learn about the...

Did mankind invent mathematical concepts, or is math the native language of the universe itself? Discover the beliefs of famous philosophers such as Plato and Euclid with regard to the place of numbers in nature, and take a brief look at...

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.