Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Design of Airfoil for Given Lift

For Teachers 9th - 11th
Students use FoilSim to design an airplane wing that generates a given lift. As they change parameters such as airspeed, altitude, angle of attack, thickness and curvature of the airfoil, and size of the wing area, the software...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

An Uplifting Experience

For Teachers 5th
Fifth graders conduct flight experiments.  In this uplifting experience lesson plan, 5th graders build an airfoil and place in a variety of conditions to observe the results of lift and force in flight, as well as angle of attack....
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

100 Years of Flight

For Teachers 7th - 10th
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...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Investigating Velocity Effects at Takeoff

For Teachers 8th - 10th
Young scholars use, with increasing confidence, problem-solving approaches to investigate and explain mathematical content. They make and test conjectures. They use tables and graphs as tools to interpret expressions, equations, and...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Boomerangs Keep Coming Back

For Teachers 7th - 8th
Students investigate the flight of paper boomerangs. In this flight lesson, students examine the flight variables of paper boomerangs, which they make, by investigating the concepts of lift and drag. They examine what happens when an...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Getting a Little "Lift"out of Calculus

For Teachers 11th - 12th
Students, after entering the given conditions into FoilSim, apply calculus techniques to verify predictions.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Aviation, Aeronautics and Aerodynamics

For Teachers 1st - 12th
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.
Worksheet
Curated OER

Forces in Fluids

For Students 7th - 10th
In this forces in fluids learning exercise, students identify the principles behind the forces acting upon objects in fluids that make them float, lift and spray.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Flying Wing

For Teachers 5th
Fifth graders create a flying wing from a pastry tray. In this flying wing lesson, 5th graders understand how the shape of the wind affects flight. Students compare the flying wing to the zanonia seed in nature. Students make changes in...
Activity
DiscoverE

Build a Better Boomerang

For Teachers 6th - 12th
This isn't the boomerang you're used to. Scholars first see how a commercial boomerang works. They then cut out a four-wing boomerang and test its flight to compare it to that of the commercial boomerang.
Lesson Plan
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WindWise Education

How Does a Windmill Work?

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Can my windmill pick up a weight? Given the same set of materials, groups design and build the most efficient windmill. On the first day, groups concentrate on getting a windmill to spin, while on the second day, they modify their...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Design of Airfoils and Problem- Solving Using FoilSim

For Teachers 9th
Ninth graders, after reading the explanation given below, complete the problem-solving activities to demonstrate an understanding of the concepts presented.
Lesson Plan
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Lift Relationships

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students use FoilSim (downloadable) to determine how lift is affected by varying parameters on the Airfoil simulation.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Upside-Down Wings

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Young scholars 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.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Paper Airplane Activity

For Teachers 9th
Ninth graders select and build one of five different paper airplane designs and test them for distance and for time aloft. Part of this activity is designed to explore NASA developed software, FoilSim, with respect to the lift of an...
Worksheet
Curated OER

Structure of Flight

For Students 9th - 12th
In this flight worksheet, high schoolers will review the structures found in organisms that allow them to fly. The function of these structures will also be explored. This worksheet has 10 crossword, 5 true or false, 5 multiple choice,...
Worksheet
Curated OER

Beautiful Birds: Non-Fiction Reading Comprehension Worksheet

For Students 5th - 6th
In this birds reading comprehension worksheet, students read a short non-fiction selections about the characteristics of birds. They answer 10 questions based on the reading which include true or false, short answer, and multiple choice.
Lesson Plan
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Mass & Velocity Effect

For Teachers 10th - 12th
Students, after reading the explanation given below, use FoilSim to complete the activity to fulfill the specifications of a given airfoil and then plot and interpret graphs.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Wind Gauges

For Teachers 8th - 10th
Students use FoilSim interactive software to become familiar with the way in which the flow of air across or around an airfoil affects its ability to create lift.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Wing Specifications

For Teachers 9th
Ninth graders use FoilSim to fulfill the specifications of a given airfoil (wing) and plot and interpret graphs.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Using 3-D Models for Code Validation with FoilSim

For Teachers 9th - 12th
High schoolers use FoilSim to complete the activity to create tables of data sets comparing the lift values for a 3-D model of a symmetrical wing section to the values predicted by the FoilSim software.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Glide Away

For Teachers 5th - 8th
Learners design and construct a gliding aircraft. They use the Internet as a research tool to gain background information about specific flight principles.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

An Uplifting Experience

For Teachers 5th
Fifth graders research and complete a graphic organizer about the principles of flight. In this aviation lesson, 5th graders experiment to understand the work of Daniel Bernouli and his discoveries about air pressure. Students create...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Paper Dart Airplane

For Teachers 3rd - 4th
Students create a paper dart airplane and measure its flight pattern. In this flight instructional activity, students follow the included directions to build their own paper airplane. The students change the aileron configurations to see...