Too much material will weigh you down. The sixth segment in a series of 22 highlights how weight affects a plane. Pupils learn that engineers take the properties of materials, including weight, when designing something. 

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

Students discover how flight is possible.  In this physics lesson, students investigate the properties of a blimp and gyro-copter, comparing rotating wings and fixed wings of aircraft.  Students create their own model aircraft...

Students investigate ways to enhance an object's flying ability.  In this model construction lesson, students construct two paper airplanes, one of which is twice as big as the first.  Students compare and contrast the two...

Students explore the principles of flight. For this flight lesson, students construct a model plane and investigate the forces acting on the flier. They will measure the thrust and calculate the stored energy.

Using PVC pipe and aquarium tubing, build an altitude tracker. Pupils then use the altitude tracker, along with a tangent table, to calculate the altitude of a launched rocket using the included data collection sheet.

When going for distance, does it make a difference at what angle you launch the rocket? Teams of three launch foam rockets, varying the launch angle and determining how far they flew. After conducting the series of flights three times,...

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

How high will it fly? Pairs build straw rockets and launch them at different angles and determine the height and horizontal distance of the flight path. Teams make conjectures about how the angle affects the measured distances and use...

Students complete calculations involving the structure and properties of matter. They engage in a variety of problem solving activities to help them determine the center of gravity.

Twelfth graders examine the physics of rocket flight. They build and launch model rockets to measure their performances.

The first two slides set up the conditions for this "experiment on paper".  A fun activity where students chose which of the rockets will fly higher in the situations given. Each slide is followed by an answer page and this...

Sixth graders investigate the forces that move certain objects.  In this physics activity, 6th graders design and create paper flying objects using origami methods, which they practice flying in different conditions.  Students...

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. 

Learners practice relating rules of trigonometry and properties of circles. With a few simplifying assumptions such as a perfectly round earth, young mathematicians calculate the lengths of various paths between satellite and...

It's the law—every action requires a reaction, no matter how small. Pupils experience two demonstrations of Newton's third law of motion as it relates to thrust in the 10th segment of a 22-part unit on flight. Using their mathematical...

Sixth graders explore physics by utilizing their math skills. In this flight properties lesson, 6th graders examine the flying capabilities of planes and birds. Students utilize math to find how many wing-beats are needed to keep a bird...

Combine measurement, following directions, physics, and art with one fun activity. Learners read a set of instruction to create three different kinds of paper airplanes. They measure, fold, and fly the planes, and record data and answer...

Students explore Boyle's Law. In this Boyle's Law lesson, students complete problems involving Boyle's Law. They examine the effects of Boyle's Law upon the human body. Students use the Internet to complete a lab activity.

Hit a home run with your lessons. A two-part activity has learners explore quadratic equations that model the path of a baseball. They see how changing the initial speed of the ball affects its maximum height, maximum horizontal...

Luckily, he hit the air bag. Scholars watch a video from the Guinness World Records that shows a stuntman falling from 342 feet. The task at hand is to determine his velocity when he hits the air bag. Thank goodness for the cushion!

Students investigate the physics of flight by creating an airfoil.  In this physics lesson, students create an airplane wing from copy paper, cardboard, bamboo skewers and other classroom items.  Students compete with their...

Now this instructional activity sounds fun! Learners throw a ball, film it as it soars through the air, and use a spreadsheet to collect data. A scatterplot is created to produce a quadratic regression equation, an equation in vertex...