When you imagine an inventor, what do you picture? Well, usually an adult. But did you know that kids can be inventors too?
Have you ever eaten a popsicle? The popsicle was invented by an 11-year-old boy named Frank Epperson. This popular snack was invented by accident! Frank left some juice and a stick outside on his porch on a cold night. When he woke up the next morning, it was a frozen snack on a stick. Now, people all over the world enjoy popsicles on hot summer days.
George Nissen was 16 years old when he had the idea of making a trampoline. He went to the circus and saw people jumping and swinging. That was when he had a brilliant thought. What if it was easier to jump from trick to trick?
He started designing the trampoline. He made many failed prototypes. But he found success in 1945. People loved the trampoline. He lived long enough to see it become an Olympic sport in 2000.
Have you ever seen braille on signs outside? Visually impaired people use braille to help them read with their fingers. To read braille, you feel shapes made from bumps. You move your hand from left to right, just like reading words. Each shape means something.
Louis Braille invented this alphabet when he was only 15 years old. He became blind when he was 3 years old after an eye injury. When he was 10 years old, he enrolled in a school for blind students. He spent many of his years there creating his tactile system of raised dots.
Today, many people use Braille in many languages to help them read. The system remains almost unchanged to this day. What a wonderful invention!
Chester Greenwood loved ice skating. There was just one problem. His ears kept getting cold. He asked his grandmother to stitch two pieces of fur to a loop of wire. And that is how the earmuffs were invented.
He developed his design as he grew older. For 60 years, he provided jobs for his hometown by making and selling earmuffs!
In 1993, 8 year old Abbey Fleck was at home making bacon in the microwave. She didn't have any paper towels to clean up the grease. That's when she had an idea. What if the bacon was hanging while it cooked?
After some experimenting with her father, the pair invented Makin' Bacon. It is a microwave-safe stand on which to hang bacon while it cooks. It cooks crispy bacon every time! Her ingenious idea made her a millionaire as a teenager.
In 8th grade, Sarah Buckel loved to decorate her school locker. She asked her father if he could make her some magnetic wallpaper to put on her locker. He loved the idea. He and his company started making the product. Sarah helped with the designs. It was a great success!
Some people say that kids are even more creative than adults. Google even has a project just to help kid inventors. What do you think?