Project Invent in the Middle School Classroom

This past spring, the 5th grade classroom of Jason Hubbard in Perrysburg, OH embarked on a mission: to build a better community through design thinking.

Students were paired with adults in the school: educators, administrators, custodians, cafe staff, nurse staff, and others. Their task? Invent something to help someone in your school community.

Students met with their assigned project partners to interview them, hear stories about their typical workday, and glean background knowledge to help inform their future ideas.

After their research and interview trips, they came back to the classroom to synthesize what they learned and brainstorm ideas for impactful inventions. They all used Makey Makey and Scratch to make their innovative ideas a reality. In the process, students learned about conductors and insulators through Makey Makey and coding through Scratch. With their finished prototypes, students met with their project partners to test and receive feedback for design improvements.

Students built everything from a Makey Makey-powered attendance and lunch tracker for the classroom to a foot-switch invention in a teacher's classroom that plays calming music. Students ended the year with an official pitch event with their project partners! Every student team also wrote a personal letter to their project partners and hand-delivered their inventions to their partner with instructions for use.

Perrysburg was the first middle school to pilot Project Invent in its entirety, paving the way for dozens more. Middle school classrooms everywhere from Alaska to Washington to Rhode Island are using the Project Invent curriculum to guide real-world problem-solving. These young students show that anyone can be an innovator.

Next year, students in Jason Hubbard’s class will be connecting with project partners in the larger Perrysburg community, taking learning outside of the school walls!