TeachersFirst's 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.
20 Results | sort by:
Take a Virtual Field Trip - Google Arts and Culture
Grades
3 to 12
tag(s): adaptations (12), africa (134), amazon (10), animals (268), archeology (23), architecture (62), aviation (33), california (15), central america (15), chemicals (37), climate change (80), colors (62), coral (10), dinosaurs (38), earth (177), earthquakes (44), ecosystems (68), endangered species (28), evolution (87), first ladies (4), flight (29), fossils (41), france (37), insects (63), inventors and inventions (70), italy (14), machines (14), magnetism (34), martin luther king (41), medieval (29), mexico (29), migration (44), molecules (39), moon (68), peru (6), presidents (116), railroads (12), rainforests (16), respiration (10), romans (33), shakespeare (91), south africa (11), van gogh (8), virtual field trips (73), volcanoes (55), women (111), world war 1 (66)
In the Classroom
Be sure to take advantage of the guide included on this site on how to take a virtual field trip. In addition, the guide offers suggestions and lesson plans for making the most of virtual field trips. Use any of the included field trips as an engaging introduction to many different topics. For example, several different field trips take viewers under the oceans and use these excursions to introduce a unit on ocean animals, climate change, or oceans worldwide. Use Google Jamboard, reviewed here, for students to share notes, questions, and information learned throughout the activity. Instead of assigning a typical research project, ask students to create a virtual field trip using Google My Maps, reviewed here. Learn the basics of creating with Google My Maps by viewing the archive of a November 2021 OK2Ask virtual workshop, reviewed here.You must be registered and logged in to add items to your favorites.
Use the form at the top of the page to log in, or click here to join TeachersFirst (it's free!).
BlackPast - BlackPast.org
Grades
6 to 12tag(s): african american (105), biographies (96), branches of government (59), civil rights (181), inventors and inventions (70), journalism (72), racism (73), sports (76), STEM (236)
In the Classroom
BlackPast is a must-have for any social studies classroom. Bookmark this resource to use when learning about Black history, African-American biographies, important events, and more. Consider creating a Padlet, reviewed here, to save different articles from BlackPast for students to easily access specific information. Use the shelf option to divide your Padlet into sections by date, topic, or events. Padlet also has a timeline feature when creating biographies or highlighting important dates within a specific time. Ask students to create blogs using Edublogs, reviewed here, to share information learned from this site. As students prepare to "show what they know," modify their technology use by asking them to use Sway, reviewed here, as a presentation tool and include images, videos, and student writing to share their learning.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
You must be registered and logged in to add items to your favorites.
Use the form at the top of the page to log in, or click here to join TeachersFirst (it's free!).
MIT Full STEAM Ahead - MIT
Grades
3 to 12tag(s): design (85), diseases (66), earth (177), engineering (116), game based learning (167), inventors and inventions (70), makerspace (42), sounds (44), space (207), STEM (236)
In the Classroom
As students participate in the activities and lessons shared on this site, utilize the many features of Google Documents or Microsoft Word to gather information, and collaborate with peers. Use spreadsheet tools to record findings and create graphs to evaluate the results of experiments. Engage students in the learning process by adding questions and comments to the videos in the learning packages using edpuzzle, reviewed here. Ask students to use Sway, reviewed here, to share the products of their learning activities. Add text, images, videos, and more to create multimedia presentations. Use the learning packages to find activities and resources to incorporate into your current learning units. Be sure to check out the interactives (games) that focus on problem-solving and collaboration skills.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
You must be registered and logged in to add items to your favorites.
Use the form at the top of the page to log in, or click here to join TeachersFirst (it's free!).
Reading Treks: My Brother's Flying Machine, Wilbur, Orville, and Me - TeachersFirst
Grades
K to 4tag(s): 1900s (59), aircraft (16), inventors and inventions (70), virtual field trips (73), wright brothers (16)
In the Classroom
You and your students will benefit from the many suggested classroom uses for this resource found on the Instructional Guide (PDF). Consider using the historical information and primary sources from the book to have students create timelines of the important events during the early 1900s. Find a variety of free online timeline creation tools located here. Make learning interactive by creating digital lessons that incorporate information about the book, the 1900s, and Dayton using a learning management system such as Blendspace, reviewed here.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
You must be registered and logged in to add items to your favorites.
Use the form at the top of the page to log in, or click here to join TeachersFirst (it's free!).
kidcyber - Shirley Sydenham and Ron Thomas
Grades
K to 6tag(s): aircraft (16), animals (268), australia (25), dictionaries (47), earth (177), inventors and inventions (70), nutrition (132), planets (107), space (207), sports (76), stars (60)
In the Classroom
Include this resource with other content when teaching science concepts. Include a link to specific sections of the site for use as non-fiction reading content. Instead of having students draw a poster to share information about animals or plants, enhance learning by asking them to annotate an image using Google Drawings, reviewed here. Google Drawings allows you to annotate an image with links to videos, text, websites, and more. Not familiar with Google Drawings? Watch an archived OK2Ask session to learn how to use OK2Ask Google Drawings, here. Extend your students' knowledge by setting up a Global Virtual Classroom, reviewed here, with a classroom in a different part of the world to compare and contrast your environments.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
You must be registered and logged in to add items to your favorites.
Use the form at the top of the page to log in, or click here to join TeachersFirst (it's free!).
Smithsonian Learning Lab - The Smithsonian Center for Learning and Digital Access
Grades
4 to 12tag(s): animals (268), architecture (62), art history (79), aviation (33), black history (109), civil war (127), dinosaurs (38), explorers (59), images (254), inventors and inventions (70), Learning Management Systems (24), oceans (134), scientists (61), shakespeare (91), Teacher Utilities (134), volcanoes (55)
In the Classroom
The Smithsonian Learning Lab is a must-add to your list of classroom bookmarks! Search for collections and information throughout the year on all topics. Add a link to classroom computers for the entire site or specific collections. Be sure to take advantage of the many features of this site to create customized collections, then have students add additional resources. Have students create quizzes for review of topics. Enhance student learning by challenging them to create a simple infographic sharing their findings using Canva Infographic Maker, reviewed here.Comments
Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
You must be registered and logged in to add items to your favorites.
Use the form at the top of the page to log in, or click here to join TeachersFirst (it's free!).
USPTO - United States Patent and Trademark Office - United States Patent and Trademark Office
Grades
3 to 12tag(s): crafts (50), digital citizenship (79), inventors and inventions (70), sound (70), sports (76), STEM (236), video (247)
In the Classroom
Whether an elementary, middle, or high school teacher you'll find ideas for building model rockets and more. Use an interactive whiteboard or projector and start by viewing the video on the home page titled Extraordinary Innovations. Or, in your blended or flipped class have students watch the video at home and enhance their learning by using playposit, reviewed here, to take notes, make comments, or ask questions to document what they learned from the video. Be sure to have a small or whole group discussion about what they learned from the video using their notes & comments the next day! At the end of your lesson or unit on patents and trademarks, transform learning by challenging students to create a timeline for the invention of the snowboard, or motorcycles, or another topic of interest. Why not modify classroom technology and make this an interactive timeline with music, photos, videos, and more using Timeline JS, reviewed here.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
You must be registered and logged in to add items to your favorites.
Use the form at the top of the page to log in, or click here to join TeachersFirst (it's free!).
Highbrow - Artem Zavyalov & Jane Limanskaya
Grades
7 to 12tag(s): 20th century (50), architecture (62), authors (100), business (50), differentiation (72), endangered species (28), equations (118), financial literacy (93), greeks (30), human body (90), inventors and inventions (70), logic (162), medicine (54), mental math (18), numbers (120), photography (127), poetry (185), psychology (66), short stories (19), surrealism (2), weather (155), women (111)
In the Classroom
Highbrow is perfect for differentiated learning. Allow students to choose their own topic and sign up for a course. When complete, choose another topic and start a new course. Modify classroom technology by having students create commercials for finished courses using Powtoon, reviewed here, and share them using a tool such as TeacherTube, reviewed here. Challenge students to create a course after a unit of study as a final assessment. Be sure to include this site on your class webpage for students to access both in and outside of class for personal use.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
You must be registered and logged in to add items to your favorites.
Use the form at the top of the page to log in, or click here to join TeachersFirst (it's free!).
Da Vinci - The Genius - The Museum of Science
Grades
6 to 12tag(s): artists (74), inventors and inventions (70), italy (14), leonardo davinci (2), renaissance (32)
In the Classroom
This site is perfect for use on your interactive whiteboard or with a projector. Explore the different portions together during your studies of the Renaissance, inventors, or artists such as Leonardo da Vinci. Share a link to this site on your class webpage for students to explore at home, or to use in your blended class activities. Add a link on classroom computers for use during computer centers. Have students replace paper and pen notes and take digital notes about what they are learnng using a tool like SimpleNote, reviewed here. Enhance students' learning by using Fakebook, reviewed here, to create a "fake" page similar in style to Facebook about Leonardo da Vinci or other Renaissance artists. Extend student learning by challenging individuals and small groups to take one of the concepts they learned from Leonardo and apply it to something from today's world. Use a bulletin board tool like Lino, reviewed here, to record and save student ideas. With Lino you can create stickies with images, commenting, videos, and more. After individuals and small groups have devoloped their art, invention, etc., have them present their learning and their invention, art, etc. to peers using one of these multimedia tools: Click the tool name to access the review: Genially, Microsoft PowerPoint Online, Animatron, Renderforest, and Canva Inforgraphic Maker.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
You must be registered and logged in to add items to your favorites.
Use the form at the top of the page to log in, or click here to join TeachersFirst (it's free!).
Story of the Web - Jack Schofield
Grades
5 to 12tag(s): computers (97), internet safety (110), inventors and inventions (70)
In the Classroom
Story of the Web is perfect for use on your interactive whiteboard or projector in a unit on technology and invention or in a computer literacy class. Share this site with students who have grown up on the Internet to provide an understanding of how quickly technology has developed. Compare it to the development of a human being over 25+ years! Have students create a simple infographic sharing their findings using Venngage, reviewed here. Use an online tool such as Interactive Two Circle Venn Diagram, reviewed here, comparing communication 25+ years ago to 2018.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
You must be registered and logged in to add items to your favorites.
Use the form at the top of the page to log in, or click here to join TeachersFirst (it's free!).
Community Science Workshop Network - Community Initiatives
Grades
K to 12tag(s): engineering (116), gravity (41), inventors and inventions (70), musical instruments (42), plants (135), sound (70), STEM (236)
In the Classroom
Use these activities to create contraptions for students to manipulate in class. As students use a manipulative, collect their questions about what they observe or wonder about the contraption's motion and characteristics. Students can research the science behind the object or motion. Use class discussion to create understanding about basic scientific principles. Be sure to include a link to this site on your classroom computer or website. Students can use these activities to teach concepts to other students in their class. Many of these activities make great demonstrations as an introduction to a science concept and for uncovering student misconceptions. Expand what you ask students to do by using creative writing, reading, creating Infographics, or learning correct ways to research and report findings about the subject matter. A suggested easy to use infographic creator is Canva Infographic Maker, reviewed here.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
You must be registered and logged in to add items to your favorites.
Use the form at the top of the page to log in, or click here to join TeachersFirst (it's free!).
GE Focus Forward - GE & Cinelan.com
Grades
6 to 12tag(s): environment (229), inventors and inventions (70), medicine (54), mental health (31), nutrition (132), oceans (134), robotics (22), solar energy (33), STEM (236), trees (17), video (247)
In the Classroom
Use this site as an anticipatory set or "activator" to introduce a unit or lesson on a projector or interactive whiteboard. Have students explore this site independently or in small groups. There is one film about sanitation that refers to "poop," so you may want to avoid classroom giggles from less mature students by setting the tone for scientific viewing. Use as any part of a career unit, as a look at explorers and innovators, or when discussing character education. Be sure to include this site on your class web page for students to access both in and outside of class for further practice. Challenge students to choose a topic to further explore and create a multimedia presentation using one of the many TeachersFirst Edge tools reviewed here. Some tool suggestions are (click on the tool name to access the review): Infogram, Marq (formerly Lucidpress), Powtoon, and Vibby.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
You must be registered and logged in to add items to your favorites.
Use the form at the top of the page to log in, or click here to join TeachersFirst (it's free!).
Great Inventions, Great Inventors - edinformatics.com
Grades
4 to 12This site includes advertising.
tag(s): inventors and inventions (70)
In the Classroom
Find information for science and technology reports on this site. Allow students to view the dates of many of the inventions to determine what scientific principle was just known to push technological thinking. For younger students, create a timeline of inventions to enhance learning and determine the impact of science, economy, and society on inventions. Use a site such as Sutori, reviewed here, that can include images, text, and collaboration. Ask older students to choose an invention and research other forms of that model, alternatives before and after, and what we are using today. Discuss environmental impacts, how the invention changed society, and other impacts.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
You must be registered and logged in to add items to your favorites.
Use the form at the top of the page to log in, or click here to join TeachersFirst (it's free!).
The Wilbur and Orville Wright Papers - Library of Congress
Grades
6 to 12tag(s): aviation (33), flight (29), inventors and inventions (70), wright brothers (16)
In the Classroom
Students doing research on the Wright brothers will find this site invaluable. Have students work in cooperative learning groups and research a specific topic found at this site. Exchange paper and pen notes by having students to take notes with an online tool like Simplenote, reviewed here. Have them share the info they learned with their small group. Tell students to be sure to save the URL to share their notes and questions. Simplenote allows you to access and update across all devices. Enhance learning by challenging students to modify their technology use and create a multimedia presentation using a tool such as Zeemaps, reviewed here. Zeemaps allows students to create audio recordings AND choose a location (on a map) where the story takes place. Alternatively, students could use Adobe Creative Cloud Express for Education, reviewed here, to enhance their learning and transform technology use by creating an interactive poster for their presentation.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
You must be registered and logged in to add items to your favorites.
Use the form at the top of the page to log in, or click here to join TeachersFirst (it's free!).
The 50 Worst Inventions - Time Magazine
Grades
4 to 12tag(s): inventors and inventions (70)
In the Classroom
Challenge students to create a list of useless inventions or to invent one of their own. Display the slide show on your interactive whiteboard or projector and discuss if students agree with a product's placement on the list. Generate a list of characteristics that would keep an invention OFF this list! Have students create commercials advertising their new product (or the one they researched). Enhance learning by challenging students to create a video commercial. Modify classroom technology use by using rawshorts, reviewed here. Share using a site such as SchoolTube, reviewed here.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
You must be registered and logged in to add items to your favorites.
Use the form at the top of the page to log in, or click here to join TeachersFirst (it's free!).
Inventors and Their Inventions - Time Magazine
Grades
4 to 12tag(s): inventors and inventions (70)
In the Classroom
After presenting the slideshow on your interactive whiteboard or projector, ask students to create their own list of modern inventions that are in general use. Students can then research their inventors and how the invention came about. Extend learning by having a "Create an Invention" Day where students design and build their own invention that would make their lives easier. Modify classroom technology use by sharing their inventions and how they work on video using rawshorts, reviewed here. Share the videos using a site such as SchoolTube, reviewed here. Another possibility is to include this slideshow in your study of the Industrial Revolution.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
You must be registered and logged in to add items to your favorites.
Use the form at the top of the page to log in, or click here to join TeachersFirst (it's free!).
Gajitz Science - Gajitz
Grades
6 to 12tag(s): cells (77), engineering (116), inventors and inventions (70), medicine (54)
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 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 be sure to include it in your emergency sub plans for students to find and explain an 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, reviewed here, on a branch of science that interests them after exploring this site?Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
You must be registered and logged in to add items to your favorites.
Use the form at the top of the page to log in, or click here to join TeachersFirst (it's free!).
Design Squad Global - PBS Kids GO!
Grades
4 to 9tag(s): engineering (116), inventors and inventions (70), sound (70)
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
You must be registered and logged in to add items to your favorites.
Use the form at the top of the page to log in, or click here to join TeachersFirst (it's free!).
DocsTeach - Digital Vaults - National Archives
Grades
3 to 12tag(s): civil rights (181), congress (36), courts (19), first ladies (4), immigration (63), inventors and inventions (70), Juneteenth (11), lewis and clark (14), presidents (116), primary sources (106), slavery (65), womens suffrage (36), world war 1 (66), world war 2 (140)
In the Classroom
Use this site as an anticipatory set for a unit in history or on inventions. Share a collection of images or invention drawings on a projector or whiteboard and ask what the invention will do. Or use the site as the starting point for individual or group projects. After demonstrating on an interactive whiteboard or projector, have students use laptops or lab computers to "collect" resources related to their assigned inventor, decade, or era in American history. Check your school policy regarding accessing student email. If students cannot have their own email accounts, consider using a "class set" of GMail subaccounts (managed by you), explained here. This tells how to set up GMail subaccounts to use for any online membership service. This would provide anonymous interaction within your class. Students can use their log-ins to collect resources.Since the documents are in the public domain (are not copyrighted), students may also download and use the files as part of other projects, such as video compilations, Powerpoint presentations, or multimedia of any sort. To access the resources in non-Flash format, click the small link to "research this record in ARC" in the detailed view of the item. You can then view and Save As for use elsewhere. Be sure you teach students about copying the URL and relevant information from this ARC page to cite the source and give credit in any presentation they make. This site is excellent for enrichment or projects for the gifted, as well. Include it on your teacher web page for students to access both in and out of class for students who are working in History Day projects or other assignments for your class.
Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
You must be registered and logged in to add items to your favorites.
Use the form at the top of the page to log in, or click here to join TeachersFirst (it's free!).
Lighting a Revolution - Smithsonian
Grades
5 to 8tag(s): electricity (60), inventors and inventions (70), light (47)
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
You must be registered and logged in to add items to your favorites.
Use the form at the top of the page to log in, or click here to join TeachersFirst (it's free!).
Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
Close comment form