Science

Paper Helicopters

Equipment: paper clips, paper or light cardboard, scissors and felt tips.

How to: Make a simple helicopter: fold a piece of paper vertically in half and then in half again, forming four quarters;  cut off one of the quarters to make each helicopter; fold the paper horizontally; taking the open end, fold down each side to create a ‘wing’; attach a paper clip to the folded end of the helicopter.  Drop the helicopters and observe the flight. Try different numbers of paper clips and observe any changes.

Health & Safety: Always find a safe place from which to drop your helicopter.

Taking it further: Does folding the wings down diagonally change its flight?  Try different designs of helicopters and compare their flight.

Paper Planes

Equipment: paper or light cardboard, paper clips, pens or stickers to decorate.

How to: Make a simple plane: fold a piece of paper in half horizontally; on each side, fold the top corner down to the centre line; now take the newly formed top corner on each side, and again fold down to the centre line; depending on the size of the paper, you may want to repeat this process once more.  Find a space to test your paper aeroplanes. Allow the children to use their new skill to try a range of sizes of planes and add paper clips to the nose to increase weight

H&S: Always take care not to throw planes near people’s eyes.

Taking it further: Can the children adapt their plane designs? Try these ideas. Which ones fly the longest/highest? Why do you think this happens?