Inventions Home

photo courtesy of Smithsonian Institute

American Inventors and Their Inventions

photo courtesy of Smithsonian Institute

Home | Research | Projects | Grading | Deadlines

We are an industrious nation which has a long history of inventions dating back to 1790, when the US Patent Office opened. The American spirit to build new and better technology has made the U.S. a world leader in many areas. In this unit you will research some of America's inventors and the inventions that changed the world. By taking time to learn about these inventions and the men, women and kids who created them you may discover the inventor that is in all of us.

What is an American invention?	Anything that has been patented by the United States Patent and Trademark Office.
What can be patented?	Inventions or discoveries of any new and useful process, machine, manufacture, or composition of matter. http://www.uspto.gov/web/offices/pac/doc/general/what.htm
What are not inventions?	Anything that is Copyrighted. A Copyright is a form of protection provided to the authors of “original works of authorship” including literary, dramatic, musical, artistic, and certain other intellectual works, both published and unpublished. http://www.uspto.gov/main/profiles/copyright.htm

Sources for creation of this Unit:

Lisa Parker Advanced Learner Teacher at Archer Elementary School	http://its.guilford.k12.nc.us/
Smithsonian Institution site of American inventors	http://www.si.edu/
Eric Noah, Waunakee Comm. Middle School	enoah@waunakee.k12.wi.us
8th grade students of the Maxwell-Newman-Drew Team of Ryan Middle School, Fairbanks, AK	http://www.northstar.k12.ak.us/schools/ryn/projects/inventors/index.html

NOTE TO PARENTS:

The websites that the 8th graders are developing will not be published to the internet without your expressed permission. And even if permission is given, websites will follow BSD internet policies.
It is strongly recommended that all students doing this research project have a copy of Appleworks on a home computer. It is free to all Beaverton S.D students. Click here to download a copy of Appleworks. Applework CDs are also available from the Stoller Media Center.
It is also recommended that students have the ability to upload and download files from their eaccess accounts from their home computers. Click here for more info on using eaccess at home.

This site is copyrighted September, 2003.
John K.Wickham
For more information, email me at john_wickham@beavton.k12.or.us