Green Room: Inventors That Changed The World

To start the month, we will be introducing students to one of the most famous men in history, Thomas Alva Edison. Thomas Edison, while best known for his perfection of the light bulb technology, made several inventions that contributed greatly to society. Born on February 11, 1847, Thomas Alva Edison was curious about the world around him from a very early age. He experimented constantly, his first true invention being the phonograph in 1878. Inventing a light bulb, the “invention” he is most famous for, for commercial use was not far behind in 1879. Thomas Edison went on to invent and create a great many thing before his death in 1931 (i.e. cinema projection, kinetophone, cement plant, etc.).

Week 1 Sub Theme Objectives

1. Be familiar with who Thomas Edison was and why he is an important part of history.
2. Know the definition of “inventor” and “patent.”
3. Be familiar with the invention of the light bulb as well as other inventions made by Thomas Edison (i.e. phonograph).
4. Have discussed how the invention of the light bulb has changed society and the manner in which people live their lives.
5. Participate in the creation of a laboratory and participate in the experimentation process.

Alexander Graham Bell was born in Scotland on March 3rd, 1847. Known as Aleck to his friends and family, Alexander Graham Bell had an interest in experimentation from a very early age, and like his father, he had a particular interest in language and sound. His mother going deaf when he was only ten years of age merely fueled his interest in one day creating something that would help people communicate. Aleck began inventing at an early age, and at the age of eleven Aleck invented a machine that removed husks from grains of wheat. At the age of thirteen, Aleck graduated from high school and moved to London. When he returned to Scotland, Aleck started teaching and studying speech at a local academy. In 1871, Bell’s life eventually brought him to Massachusetts where he taught deaf children in schools. He then he moved on and become a professor at Boston University teaching college students about speech. It was in 1876 when Alexander Graham Bell would finally invent something that would forever change the way in which people communicate: the telephone (Time for Kids, 2006).

Week 2 Sub Theme Objectives

1. Be familiar with who Alexander Graham Bell was and why he is an important part of history.
2. Know the definition of “inventor” and “patent.”
3. Be familiar with the invention of the telephone as well as other scientific contributions made by Alexander Graham Bell.
4. Have discussed how the invention of the telephone has changed society and the manner in which people live their lives.
5. Participate in the experimentation process in the Green Room Laboratory.

During week 3 students will be introduced to another inventor who contributed greatly to society: Philo Farnsworth. Although his name does not come to mind when one thinks about the TV, Philo Farnsworth is indeed the man who invented the television. The manner in which he proceeded with his invention once created is the cause of his name being absent from inventor history. You will delve deeper into this mystery with your students while reading the book, “The Boy Who Invented TV: The Story of Philo Farnsworth” by Kathleen Krull.

Week 3 Sub Theme Objectives

1. Be familiar with who Philo Farnsworth was and why he is an important part of history.
2. Know the definition of “inventor” and “patent.”
3. Be familiar with the invention of the television by reading the book, “The oy Who Invented TV” by Kathleen Krull.
4. Have discussed how the invention of the TV has changed society and the manner in which people live their lives.
5. Have participated in the creation of an “invention” to be used in today’s world.

During week 4 students will be introduced to inventions that changed the way in which the world viewed hygiene. These inventions are also quite familiar to our students in that they personally use them on a daily basis. What are these marvelous inventions? The toothbrush and the band aid!

William Addis first dreamed up the idea of the toothbrush while spending some time in jail for starting a riot. While in jail he had no effective way to clean his teeth, so he took a bone from one of his meals, bore holes into it and placed some bristles, courtesy of a guard, into the holes. When he was released he founded the Addis Toothbrush Company and began to mass produce the toothbrush. By 1840, toothbrushes were being mass produced in several countries all over the world. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toothbrush).

Earle Dickson is yet another man who contributed to society by inventing the band aid. Earle Dickson worked for Johnson and Johnson in 1921 as a cotton buyer, the same year he would invent the band aid. Inspiration for the invention came from Dickson’s wife who was always cutting her fingers in the kitchen. In 1921, cuts were bandaged with gauze and adhesive tape. Dickson wondered if he could create something that would better fit a small cut as well as move with the contours of the hand. Thus, the band aid was born. http://inventors.about.com/od/bstartinventions/a/bandaid.htm

Week 4 Sub Theme Objectives:

1. Be familiar with the inventor of the toothbrush, William Addis, as well as the history behind the invention of the toothbrush.
2. Be familiar with the inventor of the band aid, Earle Dickson, as well as the history behind the invention of the band aid.
3. Have discussed how the inventions of the toothbrush and the band aid have changed society and the manner in which people live.

People Who Make a Difference (2nd grade-level):

2.5 Students understand the importance of individual action and character and explain how heroes from long ago and the recent past have made a difference in the lives of others

Investigation & Experimentation (1st grade-level):

4a Draw pictures that portray some features of the thing being described

Algebra & Functions (1st grade-level):

1.2 Understand the meaning of the symbols +, −, =

Numbers and Shapes:

Recognition, Writing Numbers and Drawing Shapes