The children chose airplanes that they'd made from our gallery in the window...
...and in small groups we went into the hallway to test which airplanes flew farthest. The children made predictions about which airplanes they thought would fly the farthest, and why. Then they stood next to each other, and on the count of three, flew their planes!
After we measured which planes flew the farthest in each group, we talked about the results. Why did one plane fly farther than the other? Was it because of the materials they were made of? Did paper fly farther than foam? Were wings made out of straws or popsicle sticks more effective? Or was it because of how the children threw them? Did one use more force? Exploring these types of questions helps children think more critically about their hands-on learning, and introduces them to the scientific method - asking questions, forming hypotheses, predicting, testing, and analysing.
After discussing their theories, most children concluded that the airplanes that flew the farthest were made out of flat pieces of foam, and had wings on each side. Then the children started experimenting with airplanes made only out of folded paper. They quickly saw that these planes can fly much farther, and they had lots of fun testing them out!
If you have any type of paper at home, you can make airplanes there, too! There are lots of designs available online, or you can experiment with your own designs with your child! Test how fast and how far they can fly! Compare two different designs, or two different types of paper! Above all else, encourage your child to ask questions, make predictions, test their theories, and analyze the results. This is something we will be doing all year in our classroom to nurture their deep thinking.
Fly on!
Ms. Snyder and Ms. Hammond
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