An invention is the concrete application of the scientific process. To be effective in today's classrooms, and prepare our youth for life in the 21st century, our lessons have to be relevant. Every time someone brings a new solution to a problem, he or she is an inventor. Some solutions are simple. Some are complex.
Inventors like to tinker with their ideas.
Inventors are persistent. Inventors share their inventions. The Academy of Applied Science offers the Meant to Invent Teacher's Guide which outlines the timeline and process for teaching invention, either as a unique unit or as an interdisciplinary approach.