2. What do you think
an inventor does?
Turn and Talk
3. Inventors are creative.
They solve problems.
What Is an Inventor?
They come up with ideas
for something new.
This can be a product to use.
It could be a new device.
They also make things
we already have better.
4. Benjamin Franklin
Benjamin Franklin wanted to swim faster.
He created paddles for his hands.
He called them swim fins.
He was only 11 years old.
This idea led to the flippers that you might
see today.
5. George Nissen
Do you like to bounce?
George Nissen loved to watch trapeze artists.
He saw them land in a net.
He thought it would be more fun to bounce out of the net!
He was 16 when he created the trampoline.
6. Chester Greenwood
Chester loved to go ice-skating in the winter.
He did not like that his ears got cold.
He took a wire frame.
He sewed beaver skin to the wire.
This kept his ears warm!
He was 15 years old when he invented
earmuffs.
7. Cassidy Goldstein
Cassidy loved to color.
She was frustrated when the crayon broke or was too
tiny to hold.
She found a plastic tube in her house.
This tube was used to keep roses fresh.
She put the crayon in the tube and kept coloring.
Cassidy was 11 years old when she invented
the crayon holders.
8. Frank Epperson
Some inventions are created by mistake!
One day, Frank left a cup on his porch overnight.
It was filled with soda powder, water, and a stirring stick.
It was cold out. It froze!
The next morning he found a delicious treat!
Frank was 11 years old when he created the first ice pop.
9. Robert Patch
Robert loved to take toys apart and make changes.
He made a new type of toy truck.
He used a shoe box, bottle caps, and nails.
It could be taken apart and made into other things.
Robert was 6 years old when he was awarded
a patent for his design.
A patent gives an inventor the right to stop
other people from making or using their invention.
10. Louis Braille
Some people are not able to see.
This makes it hard to read.
Louis got hurt when he was 3 years old
and was blind.
Louis invented a new alphabet.
Each letter is made up of no more than six
bumpy dots.
This is called braille.
Blind people use their fingertips to read.
11. Telephone
Alexander Graham Bell was the inventor of the first practical telephone.
The first successful phone conversation
was between Bell and his assistant,
Thomas Watson, on 10th March, 1876.
Alexander Graham Bell’s first words
were:
Mr Watson – come here – I want to see
you.
12. Ruth Handler
Ruth Handler designed the Barbie doll, a popular
toy all over the world.
While watching her daughter play with paper dolls,
she set out to invent a 3D doll that children could
play with.
Ruth named the doll Barbie, after her daughter
Barbara. She also designed the male doll Ken,
which she named after her son.
The Barbie doll is still one of the
bestselling toys in the world.
13. The Wright Brothers
The Wright brothers, also known as Orville and Wilbur Wright,
were American siblings and great technological innovators.
They are credited with inventing the
airplane having made the first successful
human flight with a craft powered
by engine.
To help design the wings for planes,
they studied how birds flew
and used their wings.
16. Technology All Around Us
There are lots of different types of technology
that we can see in the world around us.
Take a look at these photos.
What can you see?
Have you used any of these things before?
Have you seen other people using
these things?
What other types of technology do you
use at school or at home?
