Session 9 — Think Like an Inventor

Duration: 60 min · Format: live online · Ages: 8–11

Session goal: by the end, students can follow the design thinking cycle, name a real problem worth solving, and brainstorm many ideas — landing on the one problem they'll build their final project around.

Before class — prep (5 min)

• Have the diagram below ready to share on screen (the design thinking cycle).
• Ask students to have paper and a pencil ready — they'll interview someone and write a problem sentence.
• Tell students this is the start of the final unit: over the next four sessions they'll invent, build, and present their own project.

Agenda

0:00 · Hook (5 min)

Ask the class and take a few answers (chat or unmute):

• "What's something that annoys you every single day?"
• Prompt them: a messy bag, forgetting homework, a boring wait, losing a pencil.

Let a few students share, then reveal: every annoying thing is really a problem to solve — and that's where every invention begins. Tell them that today they become inventors.

0:05 · Teach — Inventors start with a problem, not a gadget (12 min)

Explain, writing the key idea on your shared screen:

• Great inventors do not start with "let's build a robot."
• They start with "someone has a problem — how can I help?"
• The gadget or app comes last. The problem comes first.

⚠ Watch for the common mistake: students jump straight to a cool gadget ("I'll make a flying car!") before naming a real problem. Redirect them every time — ask "whose problem does that solve?" A project with no clear problem has nothing to aim at.

Ask: "Think of your favourite invention — a game, an app, a tool. What problem do you think it was made to fix?" (Take 2–3 answers.)

0:17 · Teach — The design thinking cycle (13 min)

Explain: designers follow a simple loop, and students can too. Share the diagram:

Walk through the four steps out loud:

1. Understand — who has the problem? How do they feel about it?
2. Define — say the problem clearly in one sentence.
3. Idea — brainstorm lots of ideas (even silly ones!).
4. Build & Test — make a rough version and try it.

Key point to land: the arrow loops back — you repeat and improve. Nobody gets it perfect on the first try.

Ask the class: "Why do you think the cycle has an arrow that loops back to the start instead of just stopping?" (Answer: because testing shows what to fix — you go around again and it gets better each time.)

0:30 · Activity (20 min)

Activity — Become a problem-finder. Have students work through the first three steps of the cycle on paper.

1. Understand: have each student interview someone nearby (a friend, sibling, or parent) — or interview the instructor as a whole class. Ask: "What's something annoying in your day?" Write down 3 answers.
2. Define: pick one and finish this sentence: "__ needs a way to _ because ___."
3. Idea: brainstorm 5+ ideas to solve it. Remind them: no idea is too silly right now.

Circulate (or read chat) and nudge anyone stuck on a gadget back toward the problem.

Debrief: "You just did the first half of design thinking — understand, define, and idea. That's exactly how real inventors begin."

0:50 · Check for understanding (7 min)

Ask these aloud or drop them in the chat. Answer key (for you):

1. What do great inventors start with — a gadget or a problem? → A problem someone has. The solution comes last.
2. Name the four steps of the design thinking cycle. → Understand → Define → Idea → Build & Test (then repeat).
3. True or False: while brainstorming, you should throw out silly ideas right away. → False — wild ideas often lead to the best ones; never say "that's bad" during a brainstorm.

0:57 · Wrap-up + homework (3 min)

• Ask one student to finish the sentence: "A good inventor starts with…"
• Homework — Pick your problem: choose the one problem you want to solve for your final project (Session 12). Write your problem sentence — "__ needs a way to _ because ___" — and keep it safe. You'll build on it for the next three sessions.

Teaching notes

• Correct this misconception: "inventing means starting with a cool gadget." Reframe as start with a problem, the solution comes last.
• Fast finishers (extension): have them write a sharp problem statement — who has the problem, what they need, and why it matters. Then ask: could AI or data help? Point back to Units 1 & 2 — a classifier (Teachable Machine) or a survey + chart could be part of the solution. Finally, have them define success: "I'll know my project works if ______."
• Low-tech fallback: no one to interview? Run the interview as a whole class with the instructor answering, then have each student define and brainstorm on their own paper.

Vocabulary

Resources

• Scratch — where students will build their idea soon.
• Teachable Machine — in case a project uses AI.
• A short "design thinking for kids" video — find one to screen-share if you'd like a visual intro.

Next session

Session 10 — Build Your Prototype: students turn their idea into a rough first version they can actually try.