Invention and Innovation (Discover and Learn with the Library series)

Foreword by Carla Hayden, Librarian of Congress

Delving into a myriad of fascinating concepts, creations, visionary individuals, and vivid characters in the nation’s life over the centuries, Invention and Innovation offers classroom-ready materials for teachers, librarians, and home educators working with grades 6–12. Part of “Discover and Learn with the Library,” an educational series published by the Library of Congress in association with the American Library Association, this resource is designed to support state curricula and teaching standards. It combines full-color facsimiles of primary sources from the Library’s unparalleled collections with source citations, information about the sources’ origins, teaching strategies, and guides to additional online resources. Offering a convenient way to integrate primary source material into classrooms and libraries, Invention and Innovation:

• features perforated pages on each primary source for ease of sharing;
• explores inventions and innovations in communication, transportation, agriculture, medicine, entertainment, health and beauty, and more;
• profiles Benjamin Franklin, “Lady Edison” Beulah Henry, the Wright Brothers, Madam C. J. Walker, Dr. Charles Drew, Alessandro Volta, and many other historical figures;
• provides materials for learners to explore a range of key STEM concepts, from inventive design processes and practices, to the characteristics and habits of mind that can support innovation, to the relationships between invention and society;
• reframes research as an engaging process that feeds curiosity, creativity, and change;
• prepares students for the future by developing their critical thinking skills; and
• provides a background essay, an in-depth usage guide, and a variety of teaching ideas and other tools for educators.

Item Number: 979-8-89255-273-8
Author: Library of Congress
Published: 2025
Publisher: ALA Editions
Pages: 96
Format: Softcover