5-Part Plan Title: Taking Flight with Paper Airplanes
Engineering Grand Challenge(s)
Covered:
Restore and Improve Urban
Infrastructure
Fellow Contributor(s): Debbie Chi
Grade Level(s): 5-7
Image file: airplane.jpg
ADA Description: Schematic of an airplane, its parts, and the purpose of each part
Source/Rights: Copyright © National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Glenn Research Center, editor: Tom Benson, May 19, 2010; http://www.grc.nasa.gov/WWW/k-12/airplane/airplane.html
1. Subject / Subject Areas: Physics, Engineering, Math
2. Time Required: 50 minutes
3. Group Size: 2 per group
4. Expendable: $7.45 for 15 groups or 30 students
5. Summary:
The lesson introduces students to the art of designing an airplane through a paper medium. The goal is that they will learn important aircraft design considerations and how they affect the flight of a plane
6. Engineering Connection:
Engineers continually improve upon their designs by the process of iteration and by making models 
 to test ideas and designs. So aerospace engineers often build small-scale models of their airplane designs first to test how it will fly without building

a large and really expensive full-size aircraft. They also experiment with many different designs to find the best one. Visualization is also an important engineering skill the students will train that when they follow the instructions on how to build different paper planes.
7. Learning Objectives: a) Become familiar with parts on a real airplane and how they relate on a paper airplane b) Build/design at least two different paper airplanes 
 c) Take part in the iteration process by modifying of their airplane designs in an attempt to improve its flight
8. Introduction/Motivation (based off TeachEngineering.com)
How many of you have ever made paper airplanes with a friend and tried to see whose airplane would go the farthest or the highest? Did you know that similarly, engineers make models of things like airplanes to test their ideas in a laboratory setting before they build the real thing? Building a model allows ideas to be tested thousands of times using less expensive materials before the real expensive thing is built.
Have you ever wondered what made your paper airplane fly the way it did, nosediving or flying far ahead? Many factors affect the flight of an airplane. What factors can you think of that affect its flight? Think about these things as you build two airplane designs of your choice. (Answer: There are things like rudders, a streamlined design, weight, ailerons [the flaps on the main wings], elevators on the rear ends of the back wings, etc. that can affect the length of the flight, steering, and distance of the flight.) Engineers consider all of these factors when deigning airplanes for speed, distance and cargo and today, we will become aerospace engineers by testing and refining different models of our paper airplanes.
9. Background: How do airplanes fly?
The basic shape of an airplane includes the wings and the fuselage. The wings are specially shaped to produce lift when exposed to a stream of air. Lift is the force acting on the airplane that is perpendicular to the direction of the oncoming air. So it is the vertical force for an airplane in level flight and can be thought of as being created by unbalanced pressures on the top and bottom of the wing. The pressure on the wing is much higher on the bottom than on the top, and this distribution allows the total lift generated from the wings to support the weight of the plane. Drag is the force that is parallel to the direction of the oncoming air. The goal of the wings and airfoils is to maximize lift and minimize drag.
The airfoil (the cross-section of the wing or other wing-like structures) shape is what affects the amount of lift generated by the wing. So adding features like rudders, tails, ailerons, or flaps can change the airfoil shape, which can change the lift, drag, and the flight direction. A flap can turn the airplane while a heavy nose can cause the plane to nosedive. A sturdy body helps control the airplane and a rudder helps stabilize the plane.

10. Vocabulary —Parts of the Plane, Describing Directions, & Principles related to
Flight a) Lift b) Drag c) Airfoil – control surfaces (aileron, rudder, elevator) d) Fuselage e) Pitch f) Yaw g) Roll
11. Activity – Testing of designs:
Have students create 2 different airplane designs of their choice to use in our experiment.
6-10 preselected designs: http://funpaperairplanes.com/ a. Use observation of our paper airplane flight to explain flight and connect it to the parts of the plane, describe motion with directions just learned b. Find the average distance and time; explain velocity and averages, etc. c. Plot values on graphs to include mathematical standards
Each student should have: a) A copy of two of the Sample Plane designs b) A copy of the Flight Worksheet
Class may share: a) Tape measure (or cones to mark distance) & stop watch b) Directions for making the 6 different airplane designs c) Calculators, scissors, tape, glue, paper clips (all optional) d) Completed examples of each paper airplane design
12. Procedure
Before the Lesson a) Make a few models of the paper airplanes from the handout to get a feel for how they fly. b) Make several copies of each different type of paper airplane, gather the materials, and set outside experiment and tables up.
In Class a) Demonstrate one or two paper airplanes. Discuss and list on the board the airplane parts learned previously. List factors they may know about that would affect flight (e.g., shape of the plane, weight, weight at the nose, tails, flaps, rudders, etc.).

b) Explain that they will get 2 designs and see how they work. Pass out a variety of designs, so each table/general area has different ones. Give students time to work on the airplanes, both designs. c) Prepare a plane-testing area: i. Measure flight distance by setting out cones every five feet, and have students estimate their flight distance based on the cones. ii. Have students use a stopwatch to time how long their plane stays in the air. iii. Have students perform three test flights with their first plane design.
Students should record all three-flight distances on their worksheet. iv. Repeat with second design v. Repeat with students own modifications to designs---observe how this changes the flight d) Have students compute the average flight time and distance for all plane designs on their worksheet. e) Ask students what they learned. Ask them what made the two planes fly differently, how that affected the flight distance and times, what they think their modifications did. Try to use new vocabulary regarding parts of the plane to conclude the activity. f) As a class, determine whose plane flew the greatest distance (ask students whose plane went farther than 5 ft., 10 ft., etc.) and determine whose plane has the longest flight time. Graph distance flown and time of flight. i. Example: Have students make a bar graph of the class data with number of students on the x-axis and distance on the y-axis. Which distance has the largest number of paper airplanes that went that far? ii. If time permits, repeat step 9 with the time averages. g) Ask students if they notice a relationship between average distance and average time (there will probably be a weak relationship between time and distance, since it is possible for a plane to fly straight up for a while, but only travel a few feet forward).
13. Lesson Closure:
Ask the students to think about qualities that made their airplanes fly well (e.g., shape, rudders, wing span, etc.). Discuss what they learned about trial and error.
Remind them that engineers rely on trial and error in their designs.
14. Safety Issues and Guidelines:
When working with paper, remind students to be careful of paper cuts.
15. Troubleshooting Tips:
If paper airplane does not glide or fly, rework the model with paper being careful to follow guidelines precisely.
16. Contributor: Debbie Chi, Duke University Boeing Grand Challenge Fellow

17. Supporting Program: Duke University Pratt School of Engineering Boeing Grand
Challenge K12 Outreach Fellows Program