Doodles, Drafts and Designs: Industrial Drawings from the Smithsonian

Grade Range: 5-12
Resource Type(s): Reference Materials
Date Posted: 10/31/2009

Students will learn about American industrial creativity by looking at industrial drawings, considering their aesthetic value as well as their importance to the design process. Engineers, inventors, and designers produce drawings as part of their creative process. They draw to work out and refine concepts and details. They draw to persuade. They draw to give direction. And they draw to record their ideas and to learn from others. An innovators gallery allows students to explore the achievements of a variety of American innovators-from designers and engineers to inventors and manufacturers. Students can also view all of the objects included in the exhibition or can examine a selected number of objects that have been placed in thematic categories. A resources page includes an extensive bibliography and a brief list of recommended websites.


National Standards

United States History Standards (Grades 5-12)

World History Standards (Grades 5-12)

Historical Thinking Standards (Grades 5-12)

Instructional Strategies