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Hovering Helicopters

Hovering Helicopters

To the rescue on land or sea! Put out the fire! Deliver heavy cargo! Design a 3-D model helicopter and discover how they fly.

Lesson Plan

Supplies Needed

Gather all the supplies needed to bring your craft ideas to life! From paints and markers to glue and scissors, our crafts section has everything to spark creativity and make every project truly special.

  • Aluminum Foil
  • Chenille Sticks
  • Paper
  • Tape

Steps

  • Step 1

    Have a discussion about helicopters. Ask students to describe interesting things about them. For example, they can fly both forward and backward, they don't need a runway to take off, they can go straight up, and they're also known as choppers and whirly-birds. Then ask students to name some of their uses, such as air rescue, military operations, taking tourists on sight-seeing trips, reporting news events, fighting fires, etc.

  • Step 2

    Have students craft a helicopter out of Model Magic. They can begin by crumpling and forming aluminum foil into an armature (a lightweight base) and then wrapping the Model Magic around it. They can create embellishments such as rotors and blades out of decorated paper and chenille sticks.

  • Step 3

    Have students present their helicopters and discuss what activity it would be used for.

Standards

SCI: Convey designs through sketches, detailed drawings, or physical models to communicate ideas and solutions.

SS: Science, Technology, and Society: Identify how technologies such as communication and transportation have evolved and how people have employed advances in technology to modify daily lives including health and economics. Explore historical examples and imagine future technologies.

Adaptations

Read a book such as "How Do Helicopters Work?" by Jennifer Boothroyd or "Henry the Helicopter" by Read With You Center for Excellence in STEAM Education. Talk about what students learned about how helicopters work.

In 1983 Australian entrepreneur Dick Smith completed his first solo around-the-world helicopter flight. Have students learn about this voyage. Where did he start from? What sights did he see? What challenges did he face? How long did it take? How many miles did he cover?