Recommended Website:
Edison National Historic Site, National Park Service
The National Park Service created this website as an extension of the Edison National Historic Site in New Jersey. There is a lot to learn here about this amazing homeschooled inventor. :)
When you get to the site, look for these highlights on the menu and homepage:
- EDISONIA — Read an inspiring biography of Thomas Edison, hear samples of sound recordings, watch some vintage kinetoscope films, browse the list of 1,093 patents he filed, or take a VIRTUAL TOUR of Edison’s home and lab.
- EDIFUN — In this section you can access 2 activities from the icon menu on the left side of your screen, or engage in explorations about Edison’s life and work by grade level from the horizontal menu bar in the center of your screen as follows:
- Would Edison Hire You? — Click on this icon in the left margin, to take the employment exam that Edison designed and used to hire help. According to this website, Edison did not have a high opinion of public education, based on his observation that even college graduates failed his employment exam miserably.
- Edison’s Invention Process — Click on this icon in the left margin, and “become” Thomas Edison; make decisions about the invention of the movie camera and projector, and see if you can succeed.
- Grade 4 and up — See a timeline of Edison’s life, or find out why you shouldn’t believe everything you read in a textbook.
- High School — Meet some of the gifted people who turned Edison’s ideas into reality. Check out all of Edison’s 1,093 patents.
- ABOUT ENHS: Has this site whet your curiosity about Thomas Edison? Archivists are available to help answer any further questions you might have.
