Stretch Yourself. . .

Teen inventors, teen creators, teen thinkers. Essentialy, they're all the same, coming up with new and creative ways to solve problems and have fun. The thing is, every teen has it in them to make something.

But where do you start? Some schools have classes you can take, i.e. industrial technology (IT), wood shop, and even automotive technology. All of these classes allow you to take things apart, put them back together again, and even build completely new things! At my high school, I am lucky enough to be in the Project Lead the Way program which focuses on teaching engineering skills.

Most projects involve designing and and building a structure or machine to suit a problem. Below is a video of one of our recent projects. We had to build the most efficient bridge in the class. It had to weigh as little as possible while holding as much as possible. The bridge itself is made of balsa wood and the load deck is made of fiberglass. The metal piece hanging down is attached to a bucket. Weight was added to the bucket until the bridge broke. This bridge placed 5th out of the 12 bridges in the class.

But the great thing is this, you don't have to wait! You can use you creativity outside the classroom every day. So get out there and let's see what you can build!

Iris Black

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Teens as Inventors

Some people are scratching their heads at this title, probably thinking, "Huh?"

Because when the word inventor is brought up, a teen is probably not the first picture that pops into one's mind. Most likely, it's the picture of an adult that does.

But that is where one would be wrong. Because, all of you teens out there, you can be inventors too! One of the keys to being an inventor is creativity - the ability to think outside the box to form new ideas that have not previously been, well, thought-of or invented. And creativity is something that teens definitely have!

So I guess the message that I'm trying to get across here is that a person, or you, don't have to be an adult to be an inventor. One simply needs some determination to succeed. Remember, Thomas Edison didn't invent the lightbulb on the first try.

What about all you guys? What's your opinion on teens as inventors?

Alyssa Montgomery
Author of Where Are You?, Mr. Mysterious, and 9:53 PM (from the Heat of the Moment Anthology).