Just over 100 years ago the Wright brothers made their first attempts at flight. August 19th is National Aviation Day where we celebrate their achievements and all the advancements made since then in the field of aviation engineering. Aviation engineers are responsible for designing, creating, testing and maintaining all types of aircraft. They can work on navigation systems as well as mechanical elements within airplanes. It is thanks to their work and innovations that air travel is so reliable today.
To celebrate over 100 years of flight and the great work of aviation engineers everywhere, we’ve compiled this list of activities to engage with your students.
- Have a group discussion - Discuss what is aviation? What is an airplane? What does an aviation engineer do? From the design, development, testing, operation, and maintenance of an aircraft, discuss with your students what goes into each field of aviation engineering.
- Have a paper airplane competition - Give each learner the same supplies and ask them to create their own model of a paper airplane. Once complete, have the students throw them and discuss which designs performed the best, and why.
- Host a parachute making contest - Using materials from around the classroom, give students the opportunity in groups to design and build their own parachute to keep an egg from cracking as it falls. Discuss what designs work best, and why.
→ Check out EiE’s ready-to-use parachute unit to support learning: Paulo’s Parachute Mission. Help Paulo and his friend design a way to plant fruit trees in the forest using parachutes and rockets.
- Draw from above - Ask students to draw or paint a scene from a bird’s eye view to get them thinking about and discussing how amazing flying really is.
- Go plane spotting - Go outside and ask students to look at the planes that fly overhead. Do they recognize what kinds of planes? Commercial jets or personal planes?
How are you celebrating Aviation Day? Let us know in the comments.
