Thomas Edison was born on February 11, 1847 in Milan, Ohio. When he was seven, he was learning in a one-room
schoolhouse. Thomas spent 12 weeks in class with 38 other students, at 11 different ages, and one teacher.
Thomas was a very eager student and constantly asked his teacher questions. His teacher was often overwhelmed by
the amount of students, ages, and different levels.
Thomas’s mother realized this and soon withdrew him
from school to begin to “home-teach” Thomas. His
parent’s exposed him to many different types of literature and learning. Thomas quickly grew to prefer independent self-
instruction. He did this by using resources at a library.
An interesting fact about Thomas was he became
totally deaf in his left ear and about 80 percent deaf in his right. He was a remarkably
intelligent person who contributed some great inventions to society.
Thomas Edison had many great inventions throughout his life. His first greatest invention was the phonograph. Thomas Edison was trying to tweak the telegraph when he
accidentally invented the phonograph.
Thomas Edison also created the Edison
Motion Pictures. Edison thought “the Edison Motion Pictures is to
the eye what the phonograph does for
the ear.”
Although there are many different inventions, the most famous one he is
known for is the light bulb. The light bulb was created in 1879. Although the idea was not a new one, Edison found a way to make
practical for people in their houses.
Edison’s invention of the light bulb helped many
people in different ways. People no longer had to rely on daylight or oil
lamps. Light bulbs allowed people to have light in their homes during the
night. This also made the work force independent
and they could work around the clock if need be. People could be more productive 24 hours a day instead of either when the
sun was out, or by burning oil lamps. Light
bulbs definitely made life easier for everyone of all
ages.
Click or right click on the picture below to watch a video
on Thomas Edison .
ResourcesBeals, G. (1997). The biography of thomas edison. Retrieved from http://www.thomasedison.com/biography.html
Bellis, M. (2010). The inventions of thomas edison. Retrieved from http://inventors.about.com/library/inventors/bledison.htm
Discovery Education (2004). (YouTube). Thomas Edison. Retrieved from http://player.discoveryeducation.com/index.cfm?guidAssetId=AA2422D5-5F21-48D3-ABF9-A6CE92C4FAFB&blnFromSearch=1&productcode=US
The great idea finder: light bulb (1998). Retrieved from http://www.ideafinder.com/history/inventions/lightbulb.htm
Images
Edison (all 3 pics): http://www.menloparkmuseum.org/thomas-edison-and-menlo-parklight bulb: http://didyouknow.org/who-invented-the-light-bulb/
light bulb: http://didyouknow.org/who-invented-the-light-bulb/
map: http://www.bestplaces.net/city/ohio/milan
phonograph: http://chicagoist.com/2007/04/23/reviewed_andrew_bird_at_the_riviera_theatre.php