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Aviation History Month
What child doesn't dream of flying? To soar like a bird… To become an adventuring pilot crossing mountain ranges and oceans… Share—or spark—your child's interest in flying. It's an excellent way of encouraging and making relevant the sciences in their life.
Background
In September 1783 the Montgolfier Brothers launched a hot-air balloon carrying a sheep, a duck, and a cockerel to demonstrate that it was possible to survive in the sky. On November 21st, a science teacher, a nobleman, and an army officer became the first human air travelers when they flew five and a half miles over Paris in a Montgolfier hot-air balloon.
The success of the Frenchmen and the ingenuity of the Montgolfier Brothers changed the course of transportation. Flying was suddenly no longer an impractical daydream. Scientists, adventurers, and yes, some rascals joined in the pursuit of sustained flight.
Surf the Web and Fly!
You'll want to check out these sites with your child:
* American Institute of Aeronautics & Astronautics
Follow the history of flight on this site's timeline. You'll also find biographies and vintage photographs, drawings, and plans.
* The Aviation History Online Museum
A Mosquito? Peashooter? Duck? Find out about these and other historic planes. The online museum is filled with information about the early years of flight, historic aircraft, engines, construction and technology, and the theory of flight.
* National Air and Space Museum
The Smithsonian's aeronautic and astronautic museum offers online exhibits as well as information about visiting the museum and other attractions in Washington, D.C.
* NASA History
NASA's historical subject guide to aeronautics, astronautics, personnel (including current, retired, and deceased astronauts), mission patches, pocket statistics, a timeline, and more!Flight Plan: Make a Parachute
We've come a long way from the paper balloon that the Montgolfier brothers designed. Today, jets are streamlined to cut through the air and go as fast as possible. Parachutes are used when you want to slow down, so they're designed to grab as much air as possible.
You'll need:
* a lightweight plastic grocery bag
* scissors
* a hole-punch
* 8 pieces of yarn, all the same length
* a key
1. Cut a large square piece from the front of the bag. Trim the corners to form an octagon, an 8-sided shape.
2. Use the hole-punch to punch a small hole near each angle.
3. Tie one end of the pieces of yarn to each hole.
4. Pull the other ends of the 8 pieces of yarn together and tie them in a knot.
5. Push the key through the knot as a weight. (Imagine it's your parachutist!)
6. Using both hands, hold the parachute out in front of you, above your head and release it. (You might want to try this outdoors!)
What happened? It's a law of physics that the larger the surface area in contact with the air, the harder it is for that object to travel through the air. So, the larger the parachute, the slower it falls down (a good thing!). The reason why the parachute floats away from you is because the trapped air spills off to one side of the parachute's top, or canopy. If you make a SMALL hole in the middle of the canopy, the parachute will fall straighter. You can race parachutes with friends and see who lands first, or who can land their parachute on a target.More Activities
Commemorate the Montgolfiers' invention and the progress of aviation with some "extracurricular" activities:
* Go on an outing to your nearest small-plane airport. Call ahead to find out if there are any special programs or tours available.* After reading up on historic planes (see the sites above), head out for your local toy or hobby shop and pick up a model plane kit that you can build and decorate together.
LeapFrog recommends:
Around the World in Eighty Days
By Jules Verne
Scholastic (Age 8 and up)
Flight: The Journey of Charles Lindbergh
By Robert Burleigh, illustrated by Mike Wimmer
Paperstar (Age 4–8)
Mouton's Impossible Dream
By Anik McGory
Gulliver Books (Age 4–8)
The Paper Airplane Book
By Simon Seymour
Viking (Age 9–12)