The Invention Convention:

1
The Invention Convention

• Understanding the Design Process Through
  Invention

Sam Zivin and Erin Close
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Overall Goal

• To harness the creative potential of 3rd graders
  while also following the State of Connecticut
  technology education objectives.

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Objectives

• Students will broaden their definitions of who an
  inventor is and what an invention can be.
• Students will develop an understanding of the
  design process by considering inventions which
  they use and see in their everyday lives.
• Students will design their own invention.
• Students will create a three-dimensional model of
  their invention by working one on one with
  Trinity College engineering students.

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Justification of Objectives

• Our objectives reflect suggested curricular goals
  and standards set forth by the State of
  Connecticut Department of Educations Division of
  Teaching and Learning, as well as by the
  International Technology Education Associations
  Technology for All Americans program.
• www.state.ct.us/sde/dtl/curriculum/currkey3.htm
• www.iteawww.org/TAA/Publications/RandS/RandSMainPa
  ge.htm

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Additional Goals

• Give students the opportunity to
• Work in groups
• Learn through hands-on education
• Interact with more mature learners (Trinity
  College engineering students)
• Increase parental involvement in the classroom

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Activity Planner
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Day 1

• Activity 1. Brainstorming on Invention
• Who is an inventor? What is an invention? List 10
  inventions you see in the room.
• Activity 2. Poem Illustration,
• Each student will be assigned a poem and asked to
  illustrate it with pictures that show the process
  that the inventor went through
• Activity 3. Introduce Invention Project
• Guidelines will be handed out, sample blueprints
  will be shown, and the contents of the crafts
  closet will be displayed

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Day 2

• Activity 1. Inventor Worksheet, Students will be
  broken into groups, each group will be assigned
  an inventor biography to read and a worksheet to
  fill out
• Activity 2. Inventor Presentations
• Each group will teach the class about the
  inventor they studied
• Activity 3. Invention Conceptualization,
• What has been discussed about the design process
  will be reiterated with a flow chart
• Activity 4. Start Blueprints
• (Rough Draft of Blueprint due the following week)

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Day 3

• Activity 1. Invention Worksheet, Students will be
  broken into groups, each group will be assigned
  an invention history to read and a worksheet to
  fill out
• Activity 2. Invention Presentations
• Each group will teach the class about the
  inventor they studied
• Activity 3. Hand Back Rough Draft
• The students will receive back their blueprints,
  which will have been checked for appropriateness
• Activity 4. Start Blueprint Final Draft
• (Final Draft of Blueprint due the following week)

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Day 4

• Activity 1. Invention Creation Students will have
  access to the crafts closet and work one-on-one
  with Trinity Engineering students in order to
  build a three-dimensional model of their
  invention.
• Activity 2. Guidelines for Final Product put
  forth to remind students what they should have
  prepared for the convention

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Day 5

• Activity 1. The Invention Convention, Students
  will briefly present their inventions to the
  class and parents, explaining the process they
  used to arrive at the finished product.
• After each student presents students will display
  their inventions, giving a chance for parents to
  see all their creations up close

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Zoom to Day 2
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DAY TWOFocus The Invention Process

• 1st ACTIVITY 40 Minutes Inventor Worksheet
• Students will be broken up into small groups
• Each group will be assigned an inventor
• EX Mary Anderson
• The group will read a short biography on the
  inventor, the biography will emphasize the
  process which the inventor followed when creating
  his or her invention
• In order to guide them in their reading and
  presentation, each student will fill out a
  worksheet with the following questions (which
  emphasize the design process)
• Who is the inventor/What did he or she invent?
• How did he or she get the idea for their
  invention?
• After he or she had an idea for their invention
  in mind, what process did they follow in order to
  make it a reality?
• Then each group will put together a brief
  presentation on the inventor which they will
  present to their classmates

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DAY TWOFocus The Invention Process

• 2nd ACTIVITY 30 minutes Inventor
  Presentations
• Each group will have five to seven minutes to
  teach the class about their inventor and the
  process he or she followed when making their idea
  into a reality.

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DAY TWOFocus The Invention Process

• 3rd ACTIVITY 10 Minutes Invention
  Conceptualization
• Students are asked to start thinking about their
  own invention
• Sample blueprints will be shown to the students
  again to make sure they understand what their
  final drafts will look like
• Rough Drafts of their blueprints are due at
  beginning of the next class so they can be
  evaluated for appropriateness and the given back
  so changes can be made for next week

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DAY TWOFocus The Invention Process

• 4th ACTIVITY Remaining Time
• Free time for the students to start work on the
  rough draft of their blueprints
• DUE for Next Week Rough Draft of Blueprint

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Evaluation Methods

• Each final project will include
• A blueprint
• A three-dimensional model
• A write-up of the steps each student took in
  coming up with their idea and turning it into an
  actual invention.

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The End.