Curated OER
Raptor Force
Learners observe a video about pilots, their desired traits, and explore the similarities between a bird and an airplane. Using paper, wood or foam, they design create an aircraft to be flown in a competition to see which plane will fly...
Curated OER
Paperplane Flying Circus
Young scholars create paper airplanes. They compare and contrast the airplanes created in class and test them out. They adjust their airplanes until they all fly. They discuss the forces that allow flight to occur.
NASA
Applying Newton’s Laws
Newton's Laws get the rocket to work, but do they serve any other functions? A six-page resource classifies rockets by the type of propellant they use. It then describes applications of Newton's Laws of Motion, both in the...
Curated OER
Soda Straw Rocket Activity
Students construct a rocket using soda straw. For this physics lesson, students determine the nose cone length that produces the best rocket. They explain the importance of using a control in an experiment.
Curated OER
Sled Kite
Students make and fly a sled kite out of plastic garbage bags, dowel rods, and more. In this kite lesson plan, students plan the kite to have symmetry and make adjustments as they test it.
Curated OER
Electric Circuits
Students model the flow of electrons in a circuit, draw diagrams of an electric circuit and build an electric circuit. Students explain how to tell when the path of an electric circuit is complete, and test the conductivity of a variety...
Curated OER
Untitled Document Aerospace Team Online:
Students explain the historical significance of use of the scientific method in developing the first airplane and appreciate the process involved in developing a new technology.
Curated OER
Wing Area
Students demonstrate an understanding of the text by applying it to the calculations involving the area of a wing. They use an online textbook to help them calculate the area of the surface of wing planforms.
Curated OER
Center of Gravity Problem Set
Young scholars read a NASA Web-based text, then demonstrate an understanding of the text by using it to complete an activity on the center of gravity of a commercial cargo airplane.
Curated OER
Energy Problem Set
Students calculate the potential energy of a glider, the kinetic energy of a moving glider and the change in velocity when potential energy changes to kinetic energy.
Curated OER
Upside-Down Wings
Students use FoilSim to demonstrate that the graphic analysis of the airflow around one object can be used to hypothesize airflow graphs for objects as they are elongated from a sphere to an airfoil shape.
Curated OER
Propellers, Forces and Energy
Students construct a model airplane, measure distance, and calculate velocity. For this creative lesson students work in groups to build a model and use it to calculate distances and velocity.
Curated OER
100 Years of Flight
Students investigate Bernoulli's principle of air pressure and how it
relates to the lift of an airplane. Students identify various Aeronautical vocabulary terms. Students construct a paper glider and experiment with the control surfaces...
Curated OER
Balsa Wood Airplane Flight and Speed Correlation
Ninth graders calculate the average speed of their balsa wood airplane. In this physics lesson, 9th graders build their own airplane and make necessary modifications to to make it fly straight. They interpret distance and time graph...
Curated OER
Turbojet Thrust
Learners, after reading the Web page Turbojet Thrust and completing the activity, explain how jet engines use air to produce thrust. The educational software ""FoilSim" is used in this activity to help students calculate thrust.
Curated OER
Absolutely, Positively a Force in China
High schoolers explore the concept of company expansion. In this company expansion lesson, students read an article about FedEx and how it was able to expand. High schoolers discuss how FedEx was able to expand. Students discuss reasons...
Cornell University
Alka-Seltzer Rockets
Blast off! An engaging hands-on activity has pupils create rockets powered by Alka-Seltzer. They learn about the physics behind these rockets throughout the process.
Cornell University
Catapults
Ready, aim, fire! Launch to a new level of understanding as scholars build and test their own catapults. Learners explore lever design and how adjusting the fulcrum changes the outcome.
DiscoverE
Air-Powered Mini Rocket
Does the position of the clips make a difference? The activity provides directions to build and test a paper rocket. Pupils attach paper clips to the rocket in different configurations and measure the distance the rocket flies each time....
Curated OER
The Aspect Ratio of Wings
Junior engineers examine aspect ration in airplane wings. Using the length and width of two differetn wings, they calculate the aspect ratios and compare drag rankings. An engineering or space science class would benefit from this...
Curated OER
A New Regime: The Beginning of SupersonicFlight
Students learn through multimedia about the history of supersonic flight and the men who made it possible.
Curated OER
How Things Fly
Middle schoolers conduct a series of hands-on experiments that help them explain the role of lift in fixed-wing flight. They observe the flow of air and water around several surfaces and then consider the dynamics of airflow around an...
Curated OER
Banana Man Glider
Students incorporate technology into the classroom as they investigate force and motion. In this science instructional activity, students construct a glider to be able to safely take a banana to the ground without dropping it. They...
Curated OER
Aviation, Aeronautics and Aerodynamics
Students investigate the physics of flight through various experiments. In this physics lesson, students construct different flying objects. They explain the dynamics that make these object fly.