Flight School

Flight School!

So, now that you have packed your bags, created you own bottle savers, made a toy for plane time fun, and have purchased your travel savers it’s a good idea to talk to your kids about what they are in store for. Even really young kids like my 1 ½ year old should at least get to be exposed to the idea of flight, so it will be less scary. Talk to them on a basis of their age level as far as depth and how flying works. Let them know that there may be turbulence and explain what it means for the older kids. This way when they hear the pilot talk about it over the speaker they can better understand what is happening and feel more grown up!

Next, maybe do some experiments with flight to get the kids involved. Reading books, doing experiments, making crafts are great ways to make flying less scary and more of a learning experience. Start by looking around your house for things that float: balloons, feathers, scarves, and tissue paper are good things to find. Have the kids help find things they think can float and experiment with them. Some things they pick out may not float and that’s good for learning. This way they will make connections in their own minds on how floating works. Note: If you have a straw you can have a feather race and see who can blow the feather using the straw across the floor fastest! See if any of the kids and yourself is able to juggle the floating scarves. Blow up the balloons to different sizes and see which one stays up longer and which goes to the ground quicker. These are things all ages can enjoy. The little ones may not be able to be in the feather race, but they do get a kick out of seeing the feather react when blown on and usually giggle at the feathers floaty dance. I asked the little ones if they could do a floaty dance of their own, they each tried twirling or waving arms and had a blast. By showing the kids how many things can float or fly a little it makes the idea of being in a plane flying easier to grasp and understand. It also sets up for plane conversation in regards to what they think the plane fly’s like, is it balloon like, feather like, scarf like, or tissue paper like.

For older kids able to follow a lot of instructions have them decorate a piece of paper. Then, either with your verbal instructions or with physical help create paper planes. I suggest adding stickers or a paper clip to the front for more streamline flying. Then, have them be the pilot and fly around the room. Ask, what they notice, does how hard they throw it matter to distance, or does it fly in a straight line or bounce occasionally? These are all great questions to ask. As always when doing any of these things write them down in your kids say the darnedest things journal.

Being trapped on a plane for hours is no fun even if you’re alone. Sometimes it can be scary when the turbulence gets bad for us, so to a child who is used to being able to move around a lot with feet firmly on the ground being on a plane can be torture. By explaining, having fun with flight, and opening a dialog with them it makes it less scary and more of an adventure. It also, gets their minds thinking about how things work, engineering, and motion. In closing, we never know what experience in life our children will remember, which ones will shape them, which one’s will inspire, and which ones will click within them as something to pursue as a career or goal. The more we explain, expose, and explore with them the more we offer them to pick from in life.

Abby