BrainBites - Inventions

Suggestions for inventions

A gadget that fits on your phone and tells you the name and number of the person who is calling.

A flashing light that lets deaf people know there is someone at the door.

A robot that takes your dog for a walk.

A special spray-on liquid that removes graffiti instantly.

A machine that can tell instantly if a footballer is really injured or is just pretending.

A camera that always makes you good-looking.

A machine that does the ironing.

A gadget (similar to a pencil-sharpener) that cuts your nails automatically.

A shampoo that gives you instantly curly hair.

Shoes with springs on so that you can bounce your way around.

A wheelchair that climbs stairs.

A pair of glasses that shows you what is happening behind you.

Headphones that automatically translate foreign languages.

An electronic gadget (the size and shape of a computer mouse) that traps spiders in the home.

A hand-held radar system for blind people.

A device worn on the wrist that gives you 5 minutes warning of rain or bad weather.

A food-taster that tells you if you will like something without having to try it.

A gentle way of waking you up in the morning.

A machine that washes you automatically - without using water!

			BrainBites - Invent-a-name

EQUIPMENT Chalkboard or whiteboard or flipchart.			DESCRIPTION The teacher introduces the idea: Television is an invented word made up of two parts. The first part - tele - comes from the Greek word meaning far and is also found in words like telescope, telephone, telegram, telegraph, telepathy. The second part - vision - comes from the Latin word for sight and is also found in words like visible, visionary, visual. When television was first invented, someone came up with the idea of putting these two word-parts together to make a new word. Tele-vision (far-sight) is a good name for something that enables us to see things that happen far away. The aim of this activity is to come up with names for new inventions by using bits of other words. Describe the invention to the students. (Use one of the suggestions below or use students' suggestions from the BrainBites activity "Inventions".) Working in small groups (of 3 or 4) students are encouraged to brainstorm ideas. Students feed back ideas to the teacher who records suggestions on the board. Students may suggest other similar inventions - associated words, ideas or activities. (All ideas are welcomed positively, even half-baked ideas.)
BEFORE Although it can stand alone, this activity can be used as a follow-up to the BrainBites activity, “Inventions”
AFTER This can form a useful jumping off point for investigating word roots, either as a class or for students working independently. SEE ALSO the BrainBites activity “Roots”
LOGICAL	MUSICAL	INTRA-PERS.	PHYSICAL	LINGUISTIC	INTER-PERS.	NATURALIST	VISUAL