Cyrus McCormick

High school (ages 12+)
Science & Technology

Name:

Date:

Step 1 · Read the article

Open the article and read it at the level above. Then answer the questions below in your own words.

https://smallwhale.org/articles/cyrus-mccormick

Write what each word means, using the article.

Do not copy the article. Write two things you learned, the way you would explain them to a friend.

Answers below are taken from the article’s stored facts, so they match what the student read.

1. When was Cyrus McCormick born?February 15, 1809
2. When did Cyrus McCormick die?May 13, 1884 (age 75)
3. Where was Cyrus McCormick born?Rockbridge County, Virginia, USA
4. What is the career?Inventor, agricultural implement manufacturer, industrialist
5. What did Cyrus McCormick invent?He invented the mechanical reaper, a machine that cuts and gathers grain.
6. Why was the mechanical reaper important?The reaper made harvesting faster, so farmers could grow more land and feed more people.

Mechanical Reaper: A groundbreaking agricultural machine designed to automatically cut and gather grain crops, dramatically increasing harvesting efficiency.
Patent: A legal document granting an inventor exclusive rights to their invention for a specified period, protecting their intellectual property.
Agricultural Mechanization: The process of using machinery to perform tasks previously done by human or animal labor on farms.
Industrial Revolution: A period of profound technological, socioeconomic, and cultural change, characterized by the shift from agrarian economies to industrial and machine manufacturing.