Once Again, Young People Will Have the Opportunity to Showcase Their Invention Skills and Create New Products.
By Mike Foley
Are you a young inventor in grades 2-8? Are you a teacher in those same grades who can sponsor a young person's quest for innovation? If the answer is "Yes," the 2003 Craftsman/NSTA Young Inventors Awards may be just what you're looking for. Co-sponsored by Sears, Roebuck and the National Science Teachers Association, the contest requires students to create an original tool invention, competing for several thousand dollars in prize money. Two national winners will each receive a $10,000 U.S. Savings Bond, while several $5,000 bonds will also be awarded.
Contest rules define a "tool" as a muscle-powered device (no AC/DC power tools allowed) that solves a problem and allows the user to do useful work. Students who enter the contest must have a teacher/adult advisor working with him/her, although each student must work independently to create the new tool invention. The independent approach encourages students to use their imagination and creative talent to find practical solutions to everyday problems. By encouraging students through the various steps of product development, the contest offers them a hands-on view of the invention process.
Each student, for example, is required to keep an Inventor's Log similar to the Inventor's notebook used by hundreds of successful product developers. In the log, students are required to use their writing skills to describe the tool and its function, while providing a written summary of their personal invention process and the problems they encountered in creating the tool. All students will retain the rights to the products they create. No contest sponsor will attempt to patent any student device, leaving students free to pursue legal protection on their own.
Products created by last year's national finalists include Spyder Legs, a fold-down attachment to increase stability on step ladders (Trey Wiler, Windermere, FL); GRASPP, a device to safely remove a hot pan from the oven (Jake Klimek, Huntsville, AL); Dirt Moist Fork, which provides water to the prongs of a pitchfork to help loosen soil (Ashton Russell, Dallas, TX); and a No Turn Opener, which attaches a lever to a doorknob, allowing it to be opened easily (Alison Sapack, Middlebury, CT).
To enter, students must send an entry form, Inventor's Log, a photograph of the student using the tool, and a diagram of the tool. The actual tool will not be sent unless the student reaches the national finals.
Entries must be received at NSTA headquarters in Arlington, Virginia by 5 p.m. EST on March 4, 2003. Tools will be judged regionally to select 24 regional winners and 12 national finalists. The national judging committee will consist of experts selected by the NSTA, who will determine the two national winners. This year, the national awards ceremony will be hosted by Craftsman spokesperson Bob Vila.
Entry forms and detailed information for students and adult sponsors may be obtained by online at:
www.nsta.org/programs/craftsman
Interested students and sponsors who have further questions about the contest may call 1-888-494-4994. Questions will also be answered via email at this address:
younginventors@nsta.org
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