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How do you become a great inventor?
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How do you become a great inventor?
Lesson narration:
English Spanish
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DISCUSS:

What kinds of inventions do you think we will have when you are an adult?

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Mystery Science respects the intellectual property rights of the owners of visual assets. We make every effort to use images and videos under appropriate licenses from the owner or by reaching out to the owner to get explicit permission. If you are the owner of a visual and believe we are using it without permission, please contact us—we will reply promptly and make things right.

Other
Anurudh Ganesan by Google Science Fair
Back to the Future 2 by Universal via MovieClips
Cellphone teleporter by Star Trek
Defiant doors and cooridors by Star Trek
First Flying Machines - Failures and Mishaps Footage Archive by Footage Archive , used under Public Domain
From Tinkering to Invention - Ann Makosinski by Forbes
Harine Ravichandran by Google Science Fair
Josephine Cochrane by The Bowery Boys , used under Public Domain
Katharina Paulus by Wikimedia , used under CC BY
Katharina Paulus poster by German Patent and Trademark Office , used under Public Domain
Rocket powered ice skater fails by YouTube user Okrajoe , used under Public Domain
Shopping, sliding doors, customers by Pond5/Konstantin
Spot mini by Boston Dynamics
Credits

Featured Reviews

“The kids really dug into the idea of making changes and trying again. They also intuitively began to compare their success with partners and other groups! It was well done and a great lesson to attach to the growth mindset. ”
· Deborah · Teacher
“Students loved inventing Bobby droppers. We have had multiple opportunities to redesign creations to improve "parachutes". The videos are informative and fun. It is meaningful learning.”
· Kerry · Teacher
“This is so much fun! We are still inventing and discussing things like adding tape (what does that do to the weight?), using string, and using more than one piece of paper. It's a lot of fun to fail ”
· Briana · Homeschooler
“The hands on activity was loved by all of my kids. They were SO engaged, worked great in partner teams and were excited when they discovered what factors contributed to successful "Bobby" droppers that didn't fall too quickly to the ground.”
· Barb · Teacher
“The students loved coming up with the fails, it made them understand that it alright to fail at things sometimes, because we learn from the fails.”
· Julie · Teacher
“The kids loved making the parachutes. It was a good lesson for following directions and the importance of working together. ”
· Laura · Teacher
“The students loved exploring their own ideas to save Bobby. I loved how there was an emphasis that failure is ok and that is how we learn.”
· Kristin · Teacher
“The best was seeing them do the activity. They were not excited about it at first, but after they got going, they didn't want to stop!”
· Suzanne · Teacher
“It was a great way to introduce science to students. ”
· Harmony · Teacher
“THE KIDS LOVED LETTING THINGS FALL AND MAKING NEW INVENTIONS TO TRY. ”
· Jamie · Teacher
“This was a great 1st project of the year! ”
· Melissa · Homeschooler
“The students started the year with enthusiasm after this lab! Failure has become cool!”
· Teresa · Teacher
“So much fun and a great way to get them thinking SCIENCE! I sent them home to continue trying to modify the paper.”
· Christine · Teacher
“Watching the student's fail and try again. Something many third graders struggle with. I also followed it up with the book "Rosie Revere, Engineer" and it really solidified the need to fail and try again. Thank you for this lesson and activity! A great way to start the science year.”
· Sarah · Teacher
“The Video went perfectly with the lesson, and the print out was priceless. Thanks”
· Angela · Teacher
“My students liked making the dropper part. They enjoyed the creativity of designing the part that saved Bobby's life.”
· Robin · Teacher
“Students enjoyed being able to create more than one version. We don't always have time to do more than one build. ”
· Tammy · Teacher
“I love this program!!!”
· Candace · Teacher
“my son was intrigued and completed independently and was excited to share his work”
· Elizabeth · Teacher
“The kids could have attempted new designs all day. ”
· Tabatha · Teacher
“My 3rd-grade students LOVED it. ”
· Bianca · Teacher
“This experiment involved the kids in physically moving their entire bodies. My kids really enjoyed creatively thinking to save bobby. Incorporating a likeable character to this experiment is very motivational. It encouraged the kids to connect and deepened their investment and drive during this experiment. We all love when there is an element of play and fun incorporated into learning. Thank you for recognizing the female inventors and their contributions!”
· Heather · Homeschooler
“The principal even poked his head in - loved the variety of video clips to show at various times during the acvtivity”
· Jacquelyn · Teacher
“The students loved that they could change the variable of the paper to make their own Bobby Dropper. ”
· Amber · Teacher
“It was great to see the kids think outside the box”
· Linsey · Teacher
“All the different ideas the students came up with and their readiness to tweak them!”
· Katie · Teacher
“Seeing student creativity!”
· Jennifer · Teacher
“This lesson was one of my favorites! The presentation of so many women in the science field was encouraging. The lesson did a great job of encouraging kids to try new ideas. As always, thank you Mystery Science for another great lesson.”
· Betsy · Teacher
“My 3rd Grade students LOVED trying to "save Bobby!" And I loved the reinforcement of learning from failures. Thank you!”
· Bob · Teacher
“The best part was when students tested the different parachutes and tried to problem solve to improve their design.”
· Susana · Teacher
“Kids were very engaged. We learned about trial and error and learning from your failures.”
· Deb · Teacher
“Kids had a great time making the Bobby droppers. It was also the perfect time to emphasize that failure is an important part of learning.”
· Shaanti · Teacher
“Great introduction to science and the engineering design process!”
· Alyssa · Teacher
“Bringing in science terminology with the experimentation process. Students loved this activity. ”
· · Teacher
“Let the kids be creative in their designs! They loved it!”
· Kelly · Teacher
“This was a great way to kick of Science this year!”
· Beckee · Teacher
“The best part was having students invent their own Bobby Dropper. The students had smiles on their faces every time they tried their invention. ”
· Antonio · Teacher
“I teach High School students with moderate to severe profound disabilities and they all were engaged throughout the whole activity. That was amazing becuase the activity took the whole class period.”
· Diane · Teacher
“Got the kids thinking like engineers. ”
· Karen · Teacher
“The students were engaged for the whole lesson.”
· Susan · Teacher
“The best part was hearing the class say that we didn't fail, we just found ways that did NOT work!”
· Cindy · Teacher
“It was a great lesson to teach that mistakes are welcome!!!”
· Carolina · Teacher
“ We had a great time thinking about inventions and coming up with inventions that might happen. We also had a great time trying to save Bobbie ”
· Maris · Teacher
“The students really got creative with their inventions to try to get Bobby to land safely.”
· Lilia · Teacher
“I LOVED the first part about making mistakes. That fits in SO perfect with back to school. My kids went home and tried new ways to save Bobby! ”
· Caite · Teacher
“The student engagement and interaction was great! The students collaborated and communicated as they created their designs.”
· Michael · Teacher
“hands on, easy materials”
· Amy · Teacher
“My students loved being inventors and trying over and over to make their Bobby Saver work!”
· Shawna · Teacher
“The students loved to invent and change and modify their designs.”
· Jeanmarie · Teacher
“This is a great design brief.”
· Shari · Teacher
“A good lesson for my children to start thinking about inventions and how to . I really liked that you chose female inventors to showcase inventors and their inventions.”
· Rachel · Homeschooler
“The kids were so creative with their designs. I had them pick the best out of their 3 designs and we took them outside to see if there was a difference with a breeze. They loved it!”
· Melinda · Teacher
“My class loved the chance to revise and rebuild. The testing was tons of fun, and we made a big production out of dropping our creations.”
· Lauren · Teacher
“Kids enjoyed the activity so much!”
· Nicole · Teacher
“The kids really enjoyed the experimentation”
· Patti · Teacher
“Seeing my child get so excited when she produced one that "saved Bobby".”
· Candace · Homeschooler
“The kids were actively engaged and loved the hands-on portion!”
· Kayla · Teacher
“The kids loved that they could keep trying and it was ok to fail.”
· Amy · Teacher
“Very interactive! Students loved it!”
· Margaret · Teacher
“The students were excited to keep inventing and experimenting after the lesson was over.”
· Rachel · Homeschooler
“My students learned that failing is okay.”
· Christal · Teacher
“students appreciate failure as a learning tool”
· Audrey · Teacher
“Great to learn about the value of "failures"”
· · Homeschooler
Lesson narration:
English Spanish

Grades K-5

Current Events And Trending Topics

Invention & Engineering

Activity Prep

Print Prep
In this mini-lesson, students are introduced to the surprisingly important role of “failure” in the process of developing solutions to problems. In the activity, Bobby Dropper, students try to save a falling bobby pin from a crash landing by inventing a paper device to slow the fall. They work like inventors, learning from their failures — and learning that failures are part of the invention process!
Preview activity
Bobby Dropper Ideas (Grades K-2) printout Print 30 copies
Inventing a Bobby Dropper (Grades 3-5) worksheet 30 copies
Save Bobby! Teacher Background worksheet 1 copy
Blank Paper (8.5 x 11")
90 sheets
Bobby Pin
Older students can use paper clips instead, but we’ve found that bobby pins are easier to use for younger students.
Details
120 pins
Scissors
30 pairs
Prep Instructions

We suggest students work in pairs. This activity is designed to encourage students to collaborate and help each other by sharing ideas.

Prepare Paper

You can use scrap paper for this activity. Use a paper cutter to cut your 8-½ x 11” sheets in half, making sheets that measure 8-½ x 5-½”. You should have enough pieces of paper so that each student has six pieces. If you don’t have time for this preparation, you can use 8-½ x 11” sheets, but be warned: students can go through a lot of sheets. We use half sheets only to minimize how much paper you need.

Review Extension

We have provided an extension video that demonstrates our invention and experimentation process. This will give you some insights into the process and may be useful for your students as well.

Exploration

8 mins

Hands-On Activity

30 mins

Wrap-Up

3 mins

Grades K-5

Current Events And Trending Topics

Invention & Engineering

Extend this lesson

Discussions

Activity

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Credits
 
How do you become a great inventor?

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