Grade 6 Flight Lesson

Goal:  Students will use Bernoulli's Principle to design a paper airplane that will fly (a long distance and that stays in the air a long time).

This lesson is focusing the content area of Flight, which is in the Grade 6 science curriculum.  The goal of this lesson is for students to explain ways in which properties of air can be applied to a flying device that they have created.  

 The curriculum expectations that this lesson will address are:

-          Use technological problem-solving skills to design, build, and test a flying device

-          Use a variety of forms to communicate with different audiences for different purposes

-          Follow established safety procedures for using tools and materials and operating flying devices

Introduction:

The students will first complete the following activity using ipads (https://download.elearningontario.ca/repository/13/1357760000/LO9089%20-%20Testing%20Paper%20Airplanes.html).  This will be a great review of the four forces of flight and Bernoulli’s Principle (these would have been previously taught, along with the parts of the airplane).  This activity is found on the OERB.  In this activity, students will also have the opportunity to virtually test an airplane.  This will be a great introduction to their next activity.   This will be completed in pairs.  This will give students the opportunity to collaborate and share ideas.  This activity allows for differentiation for students as well.  The information can be read to students or they can read it themselves.  This activity is great for visual learners.  They can see the test flight occur in a virtual setting.  They will also observe changes to the airplane and how the plane’s flight path changes.

Activity:

Students will be provided with 8 ½ inch by 11 inch paper, sample plane designs, tape, scissors, meter stick and Ipad.

Before students begin to work, a discussion about safety while testing their airplanes will occur.  Students will brainstorm ideas as a class and these ideas will be recorded on a googledocs document and shared with each student.  Students will be able to edit this document if they come up with other safety procedures that weren’t thought of during the discussion.

Students will work in pairs and either use the sample plane designs or one that they find on their own to fold and test.  Each pair will be given a testing area.  Students will be given time to work on their airplanes.

They will test each design that they have made to see how they work.  They will choose one design and take an image and a video of the flight. 

Each pair will import the image and video into their googledocs account (they can do this by creating a presentation).  The group will share this presentation with the other groups. 

The pairs will then observe another groups image and video and comment on their design and the flight of their plane.  They will provide the group with feedback.

Once a pair has given feedback to another group or two, they will check their own presentation and read the feedback that was given to them.

Students will have an opportunity to make changes to their plane and test it again.  They will have to respond to the comments that were given to them and share how the changes they made affected the flight of their plane.

Students will continue to test fly their plane.  They will perform 3 test flights while recording the distance and the time the plane spent in the air in their google docs presentation (students will video each test and import it into their presentation as well). 

After everyone completes their test flights we will come together as a class and record the flight distances and times onto a class chart to see which group and design flew the longest distance and for the longest time.

Assessment:

You would assess the design of their plane and the feedback (thinking) that occurred when they commented to other groups.

Have the students respond to two reflection questions and collect them to assess the responses.

1)      What did you like about your design and why?

2)      What changes would you make to your design and why?

(when responding to these questions some students may need scribing or the use of premiere or the use of dragon dictate, depending on the needs of the student).

Throughout the entire activity you would be observing the groups to ensure they were being safe and could assess this as well.