making kites and catching wind - Lesson 3

manna moment

Matthew 8:26-27- "And [Jesus] said to them, "Why are you afraid O you of little faith?"  Then He rose and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm.  And the men marveled, saying, "What sort of man is this that even winds and the sea obey Him?"

The Sun, the yellow dwarf star at the center of our Solar System, governs our days and gives us an enormous amount of energy.  A good portion of this energy comes in the form of heat.  We learn in this lesson that the heat given by our Sun is what is responsible for most of the wind on our planet.  There is  no coincidence in the parallel to our physical Sun and the Son of God.  The same LORD who created the physical Sun (Genesis 1:14-19; Col 1:16) also has the authority and power to tell the winds it creates to stop (Matt. 8:26-27).  When Jesus calls out into the storm and commands the wind and waves to stop, they have no choice but to obey.  When the wind and waves seem tumultuous in your life, trust the Lord,  He is in control of the wind and waves.  He can make them stop or can use them to fill your sails and set you on a course along His good and perfect will.

wilbur and orville wright

The students in my class have been amazing at reading their note-taking sheet before they come to class each week.  This allows me some freedom to not read to them word for word but be able to have some conversation about what has been read.

Today we talked about the similarities and differences between Wilbur and Orville Wright.  Wilbur was particularly interested in reading and intellectual challenges and was four years older than Orville.  Orville, on the other hand, was motivated by the prospect of making money.  Wilbur and Orville worked well together.  Eventually, Wilbur helped Orville be able to make and fly kites.  Orville ended up selling kites that he had made to the kids in his neighborhood.

Both Wilbur and Orville were good at tinkering and were known as being 'handy', able to fix things.  When bicycles were becoming the popular mode of transportation, people would bring their broken bicycles to Wilbur and Orville to fix.  Eventually this turned into a business.  As their experience grew, they didn't just repair bikes, they began to make custom new bikes for customers.  These things all contributed to Wilbur and Orville's success in discovering heavier than air controlled flight.

What is needed to fly a kite?

If the answer you chose to the question is 'wind', then you are correct.  You need wind to be able to fly a kite.  Wind is moving air and we need warm air and cool air to change places in order to have wind.

Warm, less dense air rises and expands and as it does, cooler, more dense air takes its place.  The heating and cooling of the air creates air pressure shifts which coincide to precipitation that is needed all over the earth.

Wind is very important as it keeps temperatures mild and moves air masses and Earth's evaporated water supply around the world.

coriolis effect

One factor that contributes to the direction and speed of air is the Coriolis Effect.  This is the phenomenon that typically produces winds that move from west to east.

To demonstrate the Coriolis Effect during class, I brought in a Lazy Susan and an 8 in round piece of cardstock paper.  I placed the round circle on top of the Lazy Susan and centered a ruler across it.  As I held the ruler in place and placed my pencil up against the ruler, I asked a student to assist me in turning the Lazy Susan to see the 'Effect'

As I drew a straight line, because the Lazy Susan was turning, it caused my 'straight' line to curve.  This is what happens to wind on our planet.

Making an Anemometer

Anemometers are used to measure wind speed.

​How to construct an Anemometer:
1.  Tape one end of thread to a ping-pong ball and the other end to the center of the base of a protractor.  There is a template of a protractor in the back of the Student Guidebook on pg. 69.
2.  Make sure to hold your anemometer level, away from your body and facing the wind.

How to calculate wind speed with your anemometer.
A five-degree shift from 90 degrees (hanging straight down) is a wind speed of about 6 miles per hour.  
For every five additional degrees add 2 more miles per hour of speed.

For example:  If the ping pong ball moves from straight down (90 degrees) to 70 degrees (20 degree shift), then the wind is moving about 12 miles per hour (6 miles per hour for 90-85, and an additional 6 miles per hour from 85 to 70.)

We calculated the breezes from 6 mph to 24 mph this morning.  This is one way to estimate the wind speed.

Building a Windsock

We are building a windsock this week at home so that we can determine the wind direction.  Wind direction is typically communicated by where the wind is coming from.

How to construct a Windsock:
1.  Color and cut a piece of cardstock.  There is a great template that correlates with the manna moment in our Lesson 3 bundle and on page 70 if you have the Student Guidebook.
2.  Bend the template to make a long tube and use a stapler to secure its corners.
3.  Fasten streamers or ribbon to one end of the tube.
4.  Use a hole puncher to place two holes int he opposite end of the wind sock to attach it to the string.

It is helpful to document the wind direction and speed each day.  

Mysteries of Flight Curriculum

This is all of the sheets that you might need for the Lesson 3.  It includes the note taking guide, lesson plan, instructions on how to build the anemometer, windsock and kite along with the vocabulary words.

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The whole 12 lessons is right here for you.

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