Introduction to Kite Flying

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Let’s Go Fly A Kite!Monday March 12, 2012

Warm-up: 1. Have you ever flown a kite?2. 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.

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!!!)

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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

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So How Does Something Fly?

How to Fly and Control Your Kite

How to Make Your Kite

How to Evaluate Your Kite & You!

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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

• 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!

So how does something

fly?

Continue

• 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.

So how does something fly?

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.

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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.

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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.

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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

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Assessment RubricGrading 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

10

Flying the Kite----Attempting to fly the kite----On task

10

Data Collection----Data is accurate----Data is shared with the class

10

Conclusion 10

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