This year, we took part in the Kites Around the World Project that Mr. Salsich started a couple years ago. It is a global project that allows students from all over the world plan, measure, design, and construct a kite. Classes can then upload pictures and videos to the wiki to share with everyone else! Click the picture below to visit the wiki!
There were many different steps we took on our way to flying our sled kites. We started small, with a 6″ x 8″ rectangle to figure out how to accurately divide it into thirds and fourths. This helped us in marking off exactly where the wings would go.
After figuring out the shape of the kite on a smaller rectangle, we needed to make our kite larger. We decided to multiply all of our numbers by 4 so we ended up with a 24″ x 32″ kite. After finding all of our measurements, students used yard sticks to mark off the kite. They then had an opportunity to decorate it. We completed the kites by taping on wooden dowels, adding ribbon, and tying on the string. If you’re interested in learning more about creating your own sled kite, Mr. Salsich’s students created a great video tutorial – How to Make a Sled Kite
Luckily, after the kites were completed, we ended up with a perfect afternoon to test them out! We checked the weather to find that winds were at about 12 mph. All we had left to do was to let out some string, get them up in the air and watch them fly! Watch our Animoto to see pictures and videos from the whole process, from design to flight!
*What was your favorite part about making a kite?*
*Could we have done anything different to make them fly better?*
*What did you learn from making the kites?*
Dear Mr. Avery,
Making the kites was awesome! I loved flying the kites. The kite videos are awesome! I had a great time making them.
From,
Ariel
Dear Mr. Avery’s Class,
We are doing the same kite size. My favorite thing about it is flying and designing. We think it will help it fly if the kite is bigger because it would catch more wind.
Sincerely,
Spencer & Nestor
Dear Mr. Avery’s class,
That was a wonderful post. I think it was really fun making kites for your class. How long did it take you to make the kites?
Sincerely,
Surya a 49er
Dear Mr. Avery’s Class,
Do you think the kites are fun? I think the kites are fun because you can decorate it and build it. I like all kinds of things about kites.
To answer what did you learn from making the kites, well, I learned how to roll a string on a dowel and that a spar is to put the lines on the kite.
Sincerely,
Siena
Dear Mr. Avery’s class,
I liked the part where you were flying the kites. Our class made kites too but yours went higher than ours. We are going to make big kites next week.
Sincerely,
Surya
Dear Suryah,
Thanks for writing on our blog. I’m really glad you enjoyed watching our kite video.
Good luck flying your kites! It will be lots of fun making them larger. Ours flew really well because of their size. They could catch the wind very easily.
Your friend,
Mr. Avery
Dear Mr. Avery and Class,
Great post! Your kites were terrific! In my class we are almost done with them. Mr. Salsich just has to put on the stick and the tail. We finished our decoration on our kites. I can’t wait to fly them I am so excited!
Before vacation we had a skype chat about making the kites. The hardest part about it for me was getting the lines to be perfect. The thing that I liked most about making the kite was working as a team. Me and my partner worked very hard on our kite.
Keep up the good work! Happy Blogging!
Best Wishes,
Taylor 😀
Dear Mr. Avery,
Flying our kites was really fun! I was so nervous that it was going to rip and so was Ariel. The measurements were perfect! The kite that Ariel and I made was flying the highest. We made an earth in the middle with American flags around it. We had to look at the video one step at a time. The kites flew beautifully!
Skyping with Mr. Salsich was really fun! Do you know why there was a gigantic cactus in the back? I remember you said something about it but I don’t remember.
Sincerely,
Natalie S.
Hi Mr Avery and class,
There is something magical about flying a kite don’t you think?
I loved your video and I was very impressed with how well you worked as partners. Team work is so important!
I also loved your creative designs for your kites – fantastic work!
From,
Mrs Kennedy
Dear Mrs. Kennedy,
I agree. There is something magical about flying kites! Thank you for saying that our designs were fantastic. If you saw the one with the face, that was Ben and I’s. It was really fun making the kite.
From,
Heston H.
Dear Mrs. Kennedy,
Thank you for the nicely detailed reply. I enjoyed the video too! My favorite part was flying the kite. It was a pretty windy day so they stayed up really well. I wish we could’ve stayed out and flown them for even longer!
Sincerely,
Ashley
Dear Mrs. Kennedy,
I agree, there is something magical about flying kites! My partner was Ariel. We did an Earth with American flags around it. Did you know that Betsy Ross designed the American flag?
Sincerely,
Natalie S.
Dear Mr. Avery and the 4th graders,
I am SO impressed with your kite project! I loved watching how carefully you had to measure and design your kites so that they would work. I think it must have been a very fun way to learn about geometry and measurement!
I remember trying to fly a kite as a student, but was never very good at it. You would think that it’s easy to fly a kite, but I quickly learned there is a skill to being a good kite flyer!
Congrats on a job well done. I also think it’s so terrific that you are collaborating with Mr. Salsich’s class. We all learn from each other!
Kite-less in Seattle,
Mrs. Hembree
Dear Mr. Avery and the high-fliers!
Wow! What a success! I really enjoyed watching your video as you created and measured, decorated, and finally tested the kites in the field! It certainly looked like you had a perfect day for the test!
When I was little, we used to fly kites near our house. There was a big open field and my brother and I used to enjoy launching our neon green kite. It was a traditional type of kite with a tail made out of old sheets. One day, we sort of lost our focus and got too close to the power line. Sadly, the kite wrapped around the line and was lost forever. After that loss, we tried building a box kite, but it didn’t fly very well. I guess we measured wrong.
What a terrific project Mr. Salsich has set up! We’ll have to try it!
Your friend,
Mrs. Y♥llis
Dear Mrs. Yollis,
It was my first time flying a kite! Can you believe that? It was so much fun!:) What do you think your favorite thing would be about making a kite?
It is very fun to blog with you:)
From,
Amanda ♥
Dear Mrs. Y ♥ llis,
I was so nervous that our kite would fail. I was wrong! The kite flew really beautifully! We have a spacious field so the kites had a lot of room. The power lines are annoying some times. We made a sled kite. Mr. Avery had to check our measurements. Did you like flying kites?
Sincerely,
Natalie S.
Hi Mr. Avery,
Thanks for your comment on my blog!
I would like to encourage as many people as possible to help other people. It was so easy to help the residents at the home because they were all so kind If everyone gave it a try and had the same experience we’d have to many volunteers!
I wish our school had celebrated kite day! It looks like heaps of fun to make them! It also looks like fun when you went outside to fly them! Congratulations, they all look great!
Thanks again.
Millie 😀
Dear Millie,
Flying our kites were really fun! When I was running to get the kite up in the air, I kept falling and laughing! My partner was Ariel she did a great job coming up with the design. Have you ever flown a kite before?
Sincerely,
Natalie S.
Dear Mr. Avery and students,
Great job with the kites! It was a lot of fun skyping with you on the morning that you flew the kites. We loved seeing your kites with their fantastic designs.
I could tell from the animoto that the kites flew beautifully. That means you all did careful measuring and computation. That’s one of the things I like about this project – it shows how math can be used to make things that function perfectly. Nice work!
It looked like you have a good field for flying. Our field is surrounded by trees so the wind swirls around and gusts in all different directions. It makes it excited, but also a little unpredictable.
We will try to fly our kites this week. Hopefully they fly as well as yours!
From,
Mr. Salsich
Dear Mr. Salsich,
Thank you. All the kites flew really well! Our kite crashed into another kite. Their kite fell to the ground but ours stayed high in the sky. We can’t wait to see your kites fly.
Sincerely,
Colin B.
Dear Mr Avery and class
Wow, your kites look beautiful soaring in the blue sky.
I hope there were no tangle-ups or landings in the tree tops!
What a great project to take part in.
There are so many different styles of kites that can be made – how did you decide on the style to use for yours?
from Mrs ♔Kenzie
Dear Mrs. McKenzie,
Thank you! The students did such an amazing job. We managed to keep all our kites out of the trees luckily!
We decided to make the sled kites because they lent themselves well to using a lot of math that we’ve learned this year. We got to use fractions, division, measurement, and multiplication.
It’s a great project that we recommend everyone tries!
Sincerely,
Mr. Avery
Dear Mrs. McKenzie,
There were neither tangle ups or tree top landings. A few kites ripped like mine. 🙁 But, I taped it up and it was good as new! 🙂
I decided on my style because my uncle is in the army so I did the American Flag and I love the Earth so I did the earth.
From,
♥riel
Dear McKenzie,
We had partners and decided that way. My partner was Ariel. We did an earth with American flags around it. My favorite part was measuring the wings. You had to get the measurements perfect or it would not fly well. It took a little bit of practice but we finally got it!
Sincerely,
Natalie S.
Dear class,
All of you did an amazing job creating your kites! I was so impressed by how well you worked together as a team. Your measurements were all perfect. Your designs turned out amazing. It was great to see how well they all flew!
I hope everyone is having a wonderful vacation so far! I’m looking forward to seeing all of you back in class on Monday!
Sincerely,
Mr. Avery