Ben Franklin was the first person to invent and test swim fins.

Growing up in Boston, Ben loved to swim. He wanted to find a way to make swimming easier. When he was eleven, he built a set of wooden swim paddles for his hands, similar to the fins of a fish. The paddles worked, but swimming with them eventually hurt his wrists.

Ben went back to work and made a second set for his feet. He then tried out both sets together. Unfortunately, he found that he could swim better without the paddles. He later found that floating in the water could be easily accomplished when holding onto a kite.

Today, we use flexible swim fins based on the same principle Ben used. We can swim faster and easier with them.

Read about his swim fins in:

61BVa1RnddLBen Franklin’s Big Splash

By Barb Rosenstock, Illustrated by S.D. Schindler

As an adult, Ben continued inventing practical objects. He invented the Franklin Stove, bifocals, the lightning rod, a musical instrument called the Glass Armonica, the Long Arm for reaching books off a high shelf, the library chair, the second hand clock, and the odometer — only the Glass Armonica is rarely used today.

Read about his inventions in:

Now & Ben: The Modern Inventions of Benjamin Franklin

By Gene Barretta

And of course — he discovered that electricity is the same as lightning.

If you like this post, then please consider sharing it and leaving a comment below. Thank you! Barbara Lowell, Children’s Author

To Learn More Read: Ben Franklin Runs Away at: https://barbaralowell.com/ben-franklin-runs-away

Books For Kids: Ben Franklin https://barbaralowell.com/books-for-kids-ben-franklin

Watch kids present how Ben discovered electricity at: http://www.history.com/topics/american-revolution/benjamin-franklin/videos/kids-history-ben-franklin-and-his-kite