Warren Woodberry pointed to a chalk-written list of inventors and praised his students for their rapid improvement.

Just weeks ago, he said, their knowledge of inventions was nearly absent. Then, a student named water as an invention. Another listed hip hop artists when asked to name inventors.

"You guys have a head start on the others," he said. "When you first started, the answers you gave about inventors were kind of hilarious."

The students in the Woodberry Park Inventors and Art after-school program this week discussed the origin of the Super Soaker and the importance of patents.

The goal of the Woodberry Park Inventors and Art after-school program, developed and taught by Mr. Woodberry, president of the Toledo Board of Community Relations, is two-pronged: fill a perceived gap in students' knowledge about inventors and black history.

Housed at the Frederick Douglass Center, 1001 Indiana Ave., the nascent program is in just its third session. Students are tasked with researching inventors and developing art and theater projects based on the innovators and their creations.

About a dozen students -- ranging from elementary to high school levels -- and parents with the Self Expression Teen Theater filled the room, a space renovated by Mr. Woodberry and his wife. The teen acting group is also housed at the Frederick Douglass Center.

Twila Page, president of the African American Parents Association, a parent coordinator for the teen theater, said that Toledo schools don't include enough lessons about black history and accomplishments.

"I think it's a great program because children aren't getting this subject in school," Ms. Page said of Mr. Woodberry's class. "They come up not knowing they were involved in the development of America."

A lack of black history in the schools is a problem across the country, said Romules Durant, assistant superintendent of Toledo Public Schools. He is working with the African-American Legacy Project of Northwest Ohio to develop reading samples about local historical figures, so that students participating in the federal Race to the Top program can learn the history of Toledo while they learn to read.

Mr. Woodberry said he believes the dearth of information about inventors in schools goes beyond race. Students everywhere aren't learning about inventors, don't know how technology is developed, and don't understand how innovations build on each other. He's looking for funding to continue the program in the future.

Students in the class said they like both the course material and the format, as Mr. Woodberry uses an informal approach and also lets students at times take turn leading the class.

Kathleen Williams said that it's easier to learn in the class compared to school because there's no pressure about grades. And, like her classmates, she wanted to learn something new.

"My mom always tells me it's better to explore," she said.

Contact Nolan Rosenkrans at: nrosenkrans@theblade.com or 419-724-6086.

First Published December 10, 2011, 5:00 a.m.