National Kite Month is April, so what better way would it be other than making kites? In Mr.Wallisch’s and Mrs.Rohar’s Science in Art class, the students are making a variety of colorful kites.

For the science part of this project, Mrs. Rohar said, “We wanted the students to make these kites to learn about aerodynamics: how different shapes cause kites to fly a certain way, how the center of gravity is so important for flying, and how the materials it is made of truly affects the flight.”

For the artistic side of this project, Mr. Wallisch said, “I wanted the students to be able to put a piece of themselves in their artwork; they need to make it aesthetically pleasing as it correlates with the design of the kite.”

To start off the project, students have to research the aerodynamics of kites. After, they grab a pencil and start sketching out the life-size measurements of their own personal kite. The students then add their artistic creativity on the piece of paper. Next, students cut wooden dials to attach on their life-size paper; they use hot glue to accomplish this. The final touch to this artwork is putting the string on.

Everyone test drives their kite on a huge fan in the classroom, so they will be able to observe how it flies. Some fly and others crash down, which is why after they test drive, they make adjustments! After the adjustments, the students test them outside when it is very windy out. Around the second week of April, is the time period for the kites to fly.

Some student examples of a work in progress are that of Kylie Rimes and Erin Dublin. They each have completed their research and are on their way of working on the structure of their kites.