Grade Level
1st Grade
Subject
Entrepreneurship / Financial Literacy STEM
Duration
45–60 minutes
Key Concept
Invention & Problem-Solving
Materials
3 items included
Includes the Lesson Plan, slideshow, and printable student worksheets.
Lesson Overview
Students begin by meeting Alina Morse, a real kid entrepreneur who invented Zollipops at age 7. The teacher introduces the concept of invention — that entrepreneurs identify problems and create solutions to help people. Students then participate in the “Invention Factory” challenge: using exactly 5 objects from a classroom materials table, they design and build a model of an invention that solves a real problem. The lesson closes with student presentations, a class discussion connecting their work to entrepreneurship concepts, and a written reflection worksheet.
Learning Objectives
By the end of this lesson, students will be able to:
✔ EXPLAIN in simple terms what an inventor/entrepreneur does (solves a problem, makes something new, helps people).
✔ IDENTIFY Alina Morse as a real-world young entrepreneur and describe her invention (Zollipops).
✔ DEFINE a problem that their invention will solve.
✔ BUILD a physical model using exactly 5 classroom objects.
✔ PRESENT their invention to the class, stating its name, what problem it solves, and who it helps.
✔ COMPLETE a written reflection using sentence frames.
Activity Overview
1. Meet Alina — 5 minutes
Students hear Alina’s story and are introduced to the concept of entrepreneurship and invention.
2. Think Like an Inventor — 14 minutes
Students explore what inventors do, examine familiar inventions, and learn how inventions solve problems and help people.
3. Your Invention Mission — 5 minutes
Students plan an invention using exactly five objects and identify the problem it will solve.
4. Build & Create — 15–20 minutes
Students work individually or in pairs to design, name, and build their invention while completing the accompanying worksheets.
5. Share & Reflect — 8–10 minutes
Students present their inventions and explain the problem they solved.
6. Exit Question — 5 minutes
Students complete a sentence-frame reflection and share what they learned.
Total Activity Time: Approximately 52–59 minutes
Materials
- Invention Factory slide deck (PPTX / Google Slides)
- Invention Factory worksheet packet (3 pages — one per student)
- Object Table supplies: paper cups, yarn/string, building blocks, paper clips, pencils/markers, sticky notes, rubber bands, craft sticks, tape
- Projector or interactive whiteboard
- Crayons for worksheet drawing page
- Optional: timer for building phase
Ready to teach?
Download all lesson materials in one convenient package.
The downloadable lesson plan includes detailed state standards alignment to help educators connect this lesson to curriculum requirements.
Download Individual Plans Separately
Provided by Zolli® Candy as a free classroom resource.
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