Aircraft Workshop
Aircraft and air travel workshop for schools
This workshop contains a series of practicals to understand the aerodynamics of an aircraft. The workshops will give students a better understanding of concepts such as lift, thrust, drag, weight, and the center of gravity. The workshop was designed with the physics school curriculum in mind. Moreover, it covers different types of air travel and the history of the development of aircraft.
Format
Primary: 3 x 1.5hrs
Secondary: 4 x 1.15hrs
(25-30 students per session)
Contact us for bigger events.
Age Group
Year 3 - Year 11
KS2, KS3, KS4, KS5
Build a Glider/Aeroplane
Students will build a glider/airplane from card stock using a pre-printed plan. They will learn how the center of gravity of a plane affects its performance. They will be able to take the glider home.
Experiment with Flight Controls
Students will experiment with flight controls such as flaps, ailerons, rudder, and elevators to understand pitch, yaw, and roll. These activities will help them understand the movements of an aircraft.
Fire Stomp Rockets
Fire some stomp rockets for fun. These can go over 100ft into the air!
Typical Workshop Day
- Activity - We will start the day with short activity covering the history of the development of airborne flights. This will cover kites, hot air balloons, gliders, Wright brother's first powered aircraft, propeller-powered airplanes, and modern-day aircraft.
- Practical - We will give the students pre-printed plans of a card glider and take them through a step by step by process to assemble it. During this activity, we will discuss the major components of an airplane and the forces acting on an aircraft.
- Practical - We will get the children to throw their gliders indoors and experiment with various flight controls such as the flaps, ailerons, and elevators. Additionally, we will cover the theory of how these flight controls affect the movement of an aircraft.
- Demo - Depending on time availability we may also do a short class demonstration of our propeller-powered toy cars and discuss the concept of thrust.
- We will end the day by firing some stomp rockets for fun.
- Usually, we will reset the session and repeat it for another group of children on the same day. As with all our engagements, we will end the day with a street-dance performance.
Gallery
Testimonials
"Many thanks for coming in last week, the students really enjoyed themselves."
Krista Sutherland, Sir Henry Lloyd Grammar School
"Very good due to having to tune the plane."
"This was the best once because it was the most interactive."
"Very engaging and fun, both of the speakers were helpful and approachable."
Seaford College Students