Partners in Invention Education: How Fresno Unified School District Supported Teachers With Invention Project

As the third-largest school district in California, serving more than 74,000 students each year, Fresno Unified School District (FUSD) prides itself on nurturing and cultivating the interests, intellect and leadership of its students.

As a part of a “Grow Our Own” model, FUSD designed a summer experience to provide aspiring teachers and recent teacher pipeline graduates with an opportunity to apply teaching practices. The focus of the summer experience was to have students experience hands-on STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art and mathematics) activities that included the study of diverse inventors and materials that encouraged innovation and were aligned to the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS). This led Teacher Development to choose the Invention Project® PreK-8 program from the National Inventors Hall of Fame^®.

Challenge: Find an easy-to-implement curriculum that prepares and inspires both new and experienced teachers

While searching for a reliable educational partner to help solve the district’s needs, one of the first things that drew Teacher Development at FUSD was Invention Project’s alignment with NGSS — a collection of nationally recognized educational guidelines that support an application-based approach to science education.

“The Teacher Development department was actually developed in response to Fresno United needing to prepare highly effective teachers for all classrooms,” Traci Taylor said in an interview with the National Inventors Hall of Fame. “One of the things in looking at Invention Project that made us go with [the program], was that it aligned to the NGSS standards.”

Additionally, the school was immediately drawn to how Invention Project simplifies the planning and preparation process for aspiring and new teachers, giving them the support they need to excel in their roles.

According to Sofia Fleming, a STEM coach at FUSD, one of the most difficult components of being a new teacher is learning how to manage a classroom.

“The biggest challenge I’ve seen with teachers is that a lot of them come in with no experience in managing or running their own classroom,” Fleming said in an interview with the National Inventors Hall of Fame. “They come in as aides or other roles in the classroom.”

Claire Steinbronn, another STEM coach at FUSD, appreciates the program’s ease and engaging nature, which simplifies classroom management.

“Invention Project has the curriculum laid out – [teachers] don’t have to do a lot of that back-end planning and it’s really easy to follow,” Steinbronn said. “Right off the bat, it is really engaging for students, and classroom management is a lot easier to handle when you have a high level of student engagement.”

Solution: Work with the National Inventors Hall of Fame to implement Invention Project

A turnkey PreK-8 program, Invention Project offers flexible implementation and provides all curricula and materials needed for engaging, hands-on learning. In interviews with the National Inventors Hall of Fame, three teachers, each from a different educator training program at FUSD, expressed their appreciation for how Invention Project’s flexibility allowed them to both tailor the experiences to their students’ needs and gain valuable, in-classroom training.

“It gives me the experience of being in front of the classroom and having all this curriculum and materials, and finding a way to work with them and students,” said Juliana Neri Mancilla, an educator in the district’s Para Academy Program.

Melondy Wharry, an educator in the district’s Grow to Teach Program, enjoyed how she was able to modify the program’s hands-on modules to her students’ unique interests and learning preferences.

“I’m not in a box, so to speak,” Wharry said. “I’m free to expand on the curriculum if needed, or shorten and tailor it to my students depending on what they’re needing.”

What resonated most for Alma Castillo, an educator in FUSD’s Teacher Residency Program, were the quality and thoughtfulness of Invention Project’s materials.

“The materials bring curiosity to every student so they can create [and] invent,” Castillo said. “It's a lot of different things that maybe they're familiar with, but they haven't gotten to explore this way.”

Result: Increased teacher confidence and empowered students to express their creativity

Because Invention Project’s modules are all inspired by the lessons and stories of world-changing innovators, National Inventors Hall of Fame Inductees, FUSD educators felt confident in the material they presented each day.

For Caroline Idsvoog, STEAM coach for the district, watching educators build their confidence throughout the program in real time is what most impressed her.

“I [appreciate] watching the confidence build among aspiring teachers. Day one, they're maybe a little bit nervous, they don't necessarily have a flow – but it's so much fun to watch them build that,” she said.

As reports of teacher shortages and burnout continue, FUSD’s active approach to overcoming these challenges is commendable. Having partnered with the National Inventors Hall of Fame since 2017, the district’s strategy continues to prove effective to support students in winter and summer for a rich and engaging experience.

“When [educators] see that we’re not shutting them in a box and we want them to have fun, their confidence soars,” Steinbronn said.

Learn More About Invention Project

Visit our website to take a deeper dive into Invention Project’s curriculum, and learn how it benefits educators and students alike.