Aspiring aeronautical engineers demonstrate different forces as they construct and test paper airplanes. This lesson plan links you to a website that models the most effective paper airplane design, an animation describing the forces...

Participate in the 100th anniversary of the first flight. In groups, learners use the internet to research the roles the Wright Brothers and Amelia Earhart played in promoting the use of flight. They use the information to write and...

What will flying look like in the future? The 21st lesson in a 22-part unit on aviation reviews the major aspects of the lesson. Pupils brainstorm ideas of a future flying machine.

Three activities allow young flight engineers to understand the 4 principles of flight (weight, lift, thrust, and drag), to construct a glider, and to create a propeller. Multicultural history and literature are integrated by reading...

Her is a lesson using the Ohio State Quarter. Pupils utilize beautifully-designed worksheets embedded in the plan, to study about the origins of aviation. Many of the pioneers of aviation were born in Ohio. They compare some of the...

A lengthy narrative about Pythagoras and his students precedes an activity in which your young mathematicians practice using the Pythagorean theorem to solve three problems about flight and distance. Answers are provided. 

Discover seven of the most historic aircraft and spacecraft in the collections of the National Air and Space Museum. By research into the major milestones of aviation history your learners will recognize features that enable flight,...

Students create a PowerPoint presentation and oral report on the history and future of flight. In this flight lesson, students work in small groups to research the history and future of flight. Students then write a report with...

Scholars are introduced to the significant events that led to the development of today's modern forms of air travel. They create a timeline to identify the vital events that are related to man's flight. In addition, they research various...

Students investigate the early history of flight. In this aviation history instructional activity, students are split into six groups to research the development of the ornithopter, hot air balloon and the glider. Each group records...

Young scholars investigate the physics of flight by experimenting in class.  In this history of flight lesson, students define terms such as gravity, lift, and drag in order to better understand how a plane is able to stay in the...

Students discuss how the invention of flight changed the way people live today. In groups, they compare and contrast the differences between weight, lift, thrust and drag. Using these principles, they create a glider and propeller with...

Fifth graders create paper gliders and check for flight distance and time. In this flight lesson, 5th graders create a paper glider from the attached worksheet and adjust the rudder, aileron, and elevator. They see how these adjustments...

Students gain a better understanding of the technology used by ancient Chamorros.  For this physics lesson students theorize ways to forcefully throw a fist-sized object and discuss the technology behind a slingstone.

Learners discover how air pressure effects flight.  In this physics lesson plan, students create two types of airplane wings so they can observe the way air pressure creates lift.  Learners utilize a printout to create the...

Upper elementary and middle schoolers examine the role of Chinese immigrants in America. They investigate literature, history and cultures of Chinese-Americans. This ambitious plan takes two weeks to complete, and it brings in elements...

Students research the myth of Icarus and his father and discuss the associated metaphor. They view the work of a number of artists and create a painting depicting the myth.

Here is a great art activity that can be connected to several different subjects. Kids get creative as they create kites that are inspired by a famous artist or period in art history. They begin the process by choosing their inspiration,...

Go fly a kite, then fly a plane! The 19th part of a 22-part unit on aviation looks at the way kites and gliders help aid in the understanding of flight. Pupils discuss how engineers used kites to influence airplane designs.

Students research the Wright Brothers and their plane. In this airplane history lesson, students use a hotlist of sites to research and create an airplane. A question is provided for each site.

Students construct models of early gas balloons and gliders. In this balloon and glider lesson, students create models of early gas balloons and gliders, discover how the forces of lift and drag effect aircraft in flight, and put on...

Students study the history of flight of the past one hundred years, focusing on the invention of the airplane, the introduction of women pilots and the space race. They conduct research and then write and publish a "100 Years of Flight"...

Students identify significant milestones in the history of flight. In this aviation history lesson, students study various resource materials and construct timelines of significant achievements.

Learners observe how bird flight and machine flight are similar. In this aerodynamics lesson, students observe how birds fly and the shapes of their wings, and investigate how observing birds helped develop the concept of machine flight....