Introduction to Kite Flying Navigation Screen Click to Navigate to a specific topic Introduction to Kite Flying

Let’s Go Fly A Kite! Monday March 12, 2012 Warm-up: Have you ever flown a kite? Draw a picture of a kite you have flown or have seen fly before. Objective: Students will be able to explain how kites fly in order to construct their own kite and collect and analyze data.

You will become flight engineers! Let’s Go Fly A Kite! This week: You will become flight engineers! But first… How do kites fly?

On Your Mark… Get Set… FLY! Timeline: Monday (today)- What makes a kite fly? How will we build a kite? What will be graded? Tuesday- Day 1 of construction Wednesday – Day 2 of construction Thursday- Day 3 of construction (if you are done, your job is to help other groups finish!) Friday – Data collection!! (FLYING!!!) Continue

Today Today you will work in groups to answer the questions on your classwork sheet. You will use the powerpoint to answer the questions. You will be able to understand: How does something fly? How to fly/control a kite How to make the kite How we will test the kites and how you will be graded

Navigation Screen Click to go to the next slide Click to go back Click to Navigate to a specific topic So How Does Something Fly? How to Fly and Control Your Kite Continue Click to go to the next slide How to Make Your Kite How to Evaluate Your Kite & You! Click to go back To this screen

So how does something fly? Gravity is the force acting upon the kite to pull it down to ground level. The heavier the kite the more force gravity will have therefore the harder it will be to fly it. For this reason, most modern kites are made out of very lightweight materials, therefore reducing the effect gravity has on the kite. So if gravity is pulling the kite down to earth, there must be another force that keeps the kite flying in the air, this force is known as lift. Continue

So how does something fly? To explain lift you need to understand a principle created by Daniel Bernoulli. He discovered that air pressure becomes lower if the air is moving. The faster the air moves, the lower the pressure becomes. Most modern kites are shaped so that the air travels faster over the top of the kite and slower underneath the kite. The air pressure below the kite is high, while the air pressure above the kite is low. In order to equalize the pressures, the high air pressure under the kite moves up. This creates lift and forces the kite up! Continue

So how does something fly? In order for there to be airflow over the kite in the first place there must be thrust, this is the third force acting upon the kite. Thrust is created when the wind blows over a kite being held in one place by the kite flyer. The stronger the wind the more thrust is created.

How to Fly a Kite A kite flyer will always have their kite downwind of them. This means they will have their back to the wind. There is an area called the wind window in which a kite will fly well, outside of this window the kite will stall. The diagram shows the wind window and the different zones. To be a safe kite flyer you must always have plenty of space and no obstacles downwind of you. Within this wind window there are safe, low power zones out to the sides and there is also a high power zone low down in the middle. Continue

How to Control Your Kite Drag is the final force that acts upon a kite and comes from the tail, the shape of the kite and the materials that the kite is made out of. Drag slows the kite down in the air and can affect how a kite handles. or example a kite with a long tail will have more drag and be more stable when moving from side to side. Continue

You will become flight engineers! Working in teams of two, you and your team will build a tetrahedral kite following a specific set of directions and using specific provided materials. You will use basic processes of manufacturing systems - cutting, shaping, forming, conditioning, assembling, joining, finishing, and quality control - to manufacture a complete tetrahedral kite within a given time frame. Continue

What materials will you need? Kite string Glue sticks/ tape 2 full size sheets of tissue paper per kite 7 3/4" tall plastic straws (not the flexible kind) Scissors Paper Template Pencils Continue

Continue

How do you make the kite? A packet of step-by-step directions will be provided to you with supporting pictures. The teachers will not be providing manufacturing support – you are in charge of quality control and all steps in the process!

How will you test your kites? Outside, of course! Which means we need to go out when the conditions are right. Ideally, we will test the kites twice: First to collect baseline data and second to collect data after modifications. If time will not allow for two flights, we will stick to one kite flight Continue

What sort of data will we collect? Kite altitude (height above ground). Time in air Continue

Assessment Rubric Grading Criteria Possible Points Completion of today’s Introduction 10 Construction ----Share the task of building ----On task 20 Appropriate Use of Materials during manufacturing ----Overuse of materials is avoided ----Points are deducted for each time you use the teacher as support Flying the Kite ----Attempting to fly the kite Data Collection ----Data is accurate ----Data is shared with the class Conclusion TOTAL 70 pts!!!

Conclusion

Possible modifications? What changes could I make to the basic design to improve the kite’s flight? Which changes helped and which ones didn’t? Were any changes necessary at all?

Resources http://library.thinkquest.org/2819/bernoull.htm http://www.teachengineering.org/view_activity.php?url=collection/wpi_/activities/wpi_building_tetrahedral_kites/tetrahedral_kites.xml http://www.my-best-kite.com/how-does-a-kite-fly.html