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Overview: Students use experimental procedures to design and test the flight distances of paper airplanes.
Booklink: Show Me How to Write an Experimental Science Fair Paper by Judy Fisher Shubkagel, Show Me How Publications, Independence, MO, 1993. ISBN 1-883484-00-6
Science Activity Link: Children use experimental procedures (problem statement, hypotheses, independent variables, dependent variables, controlled variables, data collection and analyses, conclusions, etc.) to investigate the problem, "Will the number of paper clips on the nose of a paper airplane affect the distance that it can fly?" This activity follows the guidelines of the Booklink, "Show Me How to Write an Experimental Science Fair Paper."
Objective: Using experimental science process skills, students design and conduct an investigation to determine if the number of paper clips on the nose of a paper airplane affects the distance it will fly.
Science Processes and Content: Processes-Observing, measuring, communicating, predicting, identifying problem statements, formulating hypotheses, manipulating and controlling variables, gathering, displaying and analyzing data, drawing conclusions, inferring, building models, and designing and conducting investigations. Content-Aerodynamics, motions and forces, transfer of energy, technological design, and science as a human endeavor.
National Science Education Standards: Unifying Concepts and Processes, (1) Science as Inquiry, (2) Physical Science, (5) Science and Technology, (6) Science in Personal and Social Perspectives, (7) History and Nature of Science
Materials: Book Show Me How to Write an Experimental Science Fair Paper, sheets of 8 1/2 x 11" duplicating or word processing paper, box of paper clips, cellophane tape, metric tapes or meter sticks.
Procedure:
In this investigation, there are several phases to be conducted: (1) preparing the flight range, (2) constructing the paper airplanes, (3) designing the investigation, (4) conducting the experiment on the flight range, and (5) designing and conducting other experiments that investigate other variables.
1. Prepare the Flight Range Select a relatively-isolated, seldom-used school hallway for the flight range, the place where the paper airplanes will be launched, observed, and flight distances measured by the children. Mark a launch line on the floor with tape. Students will need to throw their airplanes from behind this line. Beginning at the launch line, tape pieces of paper on the floor marking one meter distances (a roll of adding machine paper or toilet paper work well). Mark a distance of 15 to 20 meters in one meter intervals from the launch line. Students can measure the distances of their paper airplane flights to the nearest meter mark.
2. Constructing the Paper Airplane Many of your students will already know how to construct paper airplanes; however, for this experiment all the airplanes should be constructed the same way to ensure a fair test of flight distances. This is a variable that you and your students will want to control.
Each child should have a sheet of 8 1/2 x 11" paper of the same kind (another controlled variable). Have them fold it in half long ways and then unfold it. Next, take one corner and fold it down to the middle of the page. Fold the other corner the same way. The paper will now be shaped like a house. Now take the edges that you have just folded and fold them again into the middle, making the paper look like a steep "A" frame house. Next, fold the paper in half again along the latest fold so that the previously folded flaps are inside. The final fold is for the wings. Fold the slanted edges out so that they match up perfectly with the bottom of the plane. To give the plane a little more stability, each student can tape the wings together with a 1" piece of tape.* Since students will need to identify their airplanes on the flight range, ask them to write their names on the planes or you may wish to have them create their own airplane decorations--which they love to do.
*(Folding is a "jet" model as described in Bernoulli's Book. See Related Books).
3. Designing the Investigation For students without many experiences with experimental design, you are encouraged to guide them in the design process--discussing the process with them as they go. Although there are many questions that could be investigated, choose one, e.g. "Will the number of paper clips on the nose of the paper airplane affect the distance it can fly?" Explain that this is a statement of the problem that can be investigated experimentally and that there are two variables, (1) the number of paper clips on the nose or independent variable, and (2) the distance it can fly or the dependent variable. Explain that everyone will fly their plane 3 times, once without any paper clips, once with one paper clip, and once with three paper clips. Ask them to predict which of these variables will cause the planes to travel the greatest distance. Then translate their ideas into a hypothesis, g.g. "Three paper clips on the nose will make the plane fly farther than with none or one on the plane's nose." Have the students write the statement of the problem they are investigating, the hypothesis, the independent variable (number of paperclips), dependent variable ( distance of flight), and controlled variables (same hallway, same thrust, same angle of release, etc.). Make sure they understand and can describe what these processes are.
4. Conducting the Experiment on the Flight Range Lead the students with their planes to the flight range. With no paper clips on the nose, have the students launch their planes using a medium amount of thrust at the same angle of release. (The force of the throw and the angle are difficult to control but the issue becomes a good one for discussion of control of variables). Two or three students can launch at the same time, then rotate to the back of the launch line. For safety, no one should be across the line in the launch area until all planes have been launched. After everyone has launched their planes, they can now go down range into the launch area to measure and record the distance of their flight, in meters. Repeat the investigation twice more, once with one paper clip on the nose and once with three clips. Now return to the classroom to have the students record, display (on a chart or graph or both) the class results. This is a good time to teach or reinforce math concepts like range, mean, median, and mode. Have the class examine the data (information from the investigation), determine if their hypotheses were supported or not supported by the data (you may want to stress that hypotheses are never "right" or "wrong", only supported or not supported by the data), and discuss the experiment and what it showed. Remind them that although they did only one trial launch each with 0, 1, and 3 paper clips that it is desirable to do several trials with each, then take an average. Increased trials generally increase confidence in the data. Have the children use vocabulary associated with flight, e.g. thrust, drag, lift, gravity, and others.
5. Designing and Conducting Other Experiments Encourage the children to design and conduct other paper airplane experiments on their own, using the same science processes as in this investigation. Some of the independent variables that may affect flight distances are: type or weight of paper, airplane design, placement of paper clips on the planes fuselage, amount of thrust, flap folds, and so on. You may want to have your students choose one investigation of their choice to do at home, including a written and/or verbal report to the class. Make sure to remind them to use experimental methods.
Safety: Stress that airplanes must never be thrown toward other people because of potential eye injury. Students must always be behind the launch line when airplanes are being tested.
Related Books:
Bernoulli's Book by B.K. Hixson, The Wild Goose Company, Salt Lake City, UT, 1991. ISBN 1-57156-002-5
The Paper Airplane Book by Seymour Simon, Puffin Books, NY, 1971. ISBN 0-14-030925-X
Kids' Paper Airplane Book by Ken Blackburn and Jeff Lammers, Workman Publishing, NY, 1996. ISBN 0-7611-0478-X
Flying Machines by Nick Arnold, Henderson, NY, 1996. ISBN 0-7894-1145-8
Wild Wings by Peter Clemens and Shari Cohen, Lowell House Juvenile, Los Angeles, CA, 1999. ISBN 0-7373-0312-3
Flights of Imagination: An Introduction to Aerodynamics by Wayne Hosking, National Science Teachers Association, Washington, 1990. ISBN 0-87355-067-6
Air and Flight by Neil Ardley, Franklin Watts, Inc., NY, 1984. ISBN 0-531-03775-4
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