This week you will learn:
• What an invention is and why people invent
• Amazing medieval inventions like windmills and clocks
• How the printing press changed the world
• Which medieval inventions you still use today
An invention is something new that someone creates to solve a problem. People in the Middle Ages were great inventors!
They built windmills that used wind power to grind grain into flour. They made mechanical clocks that rang bells so towns knew what time it was. They invented eyeglasses to help people see, and the heavy plow that helped farmers grow much more food.
Inventions did not come from magic. They came from people noticing a problem and asking, 'How can I fix this?' This week, we will meet the clever inventions of the Middle Ages — and you will even invent something yourself!
1. What is an invention?
2. What did windmills do?
3. Why were mechanical clocks helpful for towns?
4. Where do inventions come from?
Write what each word means in your own words.
Match each invention to the problem it solved. Write the letter: A (hard to see), B (grinding grain by hand), C (not knowing the time), D (hard soil to farm).
| Invention | Problem it solved (A–D) |
|---|---|
| Windmill | |
| Mechanical clock | |
| Eyeglasses | |
| Heavy plow |
Write T for true or F for false in each circle.
Draw a medieval windmill on a hill, with sails spinning in the wind and sacks of grain nearby.
Tomorrow we will learn about the most important invention of the Middle Ages — the printing press! Before it, books were so rare that most people never owned even one.