Science Smarts: The summer of science!

By Patty Rooks on June 25, 2022.

Can you believe that summer has officially started! June 21 was the summer solstice. This means this was the day of the year where we have the most sunlight hours in a day. It seems so early in the year for this as summer is just starting! I think of it as a promising way to kick off the long warm days and nights of summer. Of course, what better way to kick off summer but with some fun STEM activities? Let’s get started.

*Remember to ask an adult before doing this experiment.

Materials

• sheet of paper

• masking tape

• wooden skewer (2)

• ribbons (optional)

• string

• scissors

• scrap piece of cardboard

• hole punch

Procedure

1. Fold the piece of paper at an angle in half. I know this is hard to explain and seems a bit tricky. And may take a few attempts. Essentially your 8.5″ x 11″ sheet of paper will be 8.5″ x 5.5″.

2. Run a strip of masking tape on this crease from the top to the bottom. Hold the crease of your fold, open it up. You should now have the shape of a kite. Press down firmly so it will stay open.

3. Tape on of the wooden skewers and place it horizontally at the top of the kite. Place it from one corner of the paper to the other corner.

4. Place the second wooden skewer vertically from the top of the paper (tip) to the bottom. You will have a “t”.

5. Place a piece of tape over each wooden skewer to hold it firmly in place.

6. Using the hole punch, put a hole in the bottom of the kite.

7. Tie a few ribbons or streamers through this hole.

8. Set the kite aside for a minute.

9. Using the scrap piece of cardboard, wrap some string around it, this will be your string winder to fly your kite. Once you have enough string, tie the loose end to your kite through the hole you put your ribbons in. I like to secure this tie with a bit of tape just in case it is VERY windy out.

10. Find a SAFE location away from power lines and buildings on a windy day.

11. Fly your kite!

12. As you are flying your kite, think about how it is getting up in the air. What makes it stay there?

What is going on?

In order to get your kite airborne, you probably had to run with it for a little bit pulling the kite behind you. This helps create LIFT to push the kite high into the sky. I know it seems simple, pull the kite, and it fly high in the sky. Actually, getting a kite into the air actually involves quite a bit of science. In fact, the physics of how a kite gets lift in order to fly is very similar to the physics of how an airplane gets lift in order to take off! The wings on an airplane AND a kite generate the lift you need to get the air moving over the surface of the wing. Pretty amazing, I think!

Patty Rooks, Senior Scientific Consultant PRAXIS, “Connecting Science To The Community”. Contact with Praxis at praxis@praxismh.ca, http://www.praxismh.ca, Tweet or follow us @PraxisMedHat, or friend us on Facebook. Address: #12 826 11 Street S. E., Medicine Hat, Alberta, T1A 1T7 Phone: 403.527.5365, email: praxis@praxismh.ca

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