Sail Across the Curriculum with KITES!
by Sharon Musto
It's hard to believe we're already on the verge of spring
and National Kite Month! Kites can be incorporated into
virtually *every subject area* and are suitable for
learning at all grade and ability levels ... so ... this
seems to be a good opportunity to share my lists of
curricular connections, books, and internet resources.
For suggestions on facilitating a kite making activity in
your classroom, click here.
Every subject? Sure! Kites can be used to develop
concepts, skills, and vocabulary in...
Science
Forces affecting flight:
lift, drag, gravity
Other factors:
Dihedral, pitch (angle of attack), roll, yaw, Bernoulli's
Principle
Meteorology:
wind speed / Beaufort, temperature, altitude, electricity
in nature
Space technology (NASA, Rogallo)
Engineering (bridge over the Niagara gorge)
Mathematics
Measurement:
length, width, area, weight, estimation, length of line,
line pull, scaling up plans
Venn diagrams:
differences and similarities between various types of
kites
Geometry: sail area, tetrahedrals
Trigonometry (calculating height of kite)
Social Studies
History:
timelines, names to research (contributions to kiting)
Geography:
Cultural significance in other countries, origins and
tracing migration of kites around the world
Applications through history:
military, scientific, rescue, logging, fishing, aerial,
traction telecommunication, photography, recreation, art
and culture...
History of flight (da Vinci, Cayley, Hargrave, Wright
Brothers, Bell),
Telecommunication
Language Arts
Reading, Discussing,
Stories, poems, instructions, kite plans
Writing
About the experience of building, flying, stories, poems,
Listening to instructions, interpreting, applying
Vocabulary development:
names for wind, wind gods in mythology, names for kite
parts, word searches, puzzles, names for kites in other
languages
Music
songs about kite flying
kites with hummers
factors influencing pitch (physics!)
Art
working with various media
kites as sculptures
color, mixing, translucency, opacity, contrast
symmetry and asymmetry, balance
cultural aspects, comparing traditions
Physical Education, and Fine and Gross Motor Skills
Flying
kite games
choreographing movement of self and kites to music
skills development
working with tools & materials (e.g., hacksaw, tapes,
glues) tying knots, sewing, using a tape, glues
Socialization
cooperative learning/group projects (e.g., train,
arch, multicellular unit, common themes)
KITE BOOKS: FICTION AND FOLKLORE
Sho and the Demons of the Deep, Annouchka Gravel
Galouchko
Kite Flier, Dennis Haseley
The Legend of the Kite, Chen Jiang Hong
The Dragon Kite, Nancy Luenn
A Sky Full of Kites, Osmond Molarsky
Dragon Kite of the Autumn Moon, Valerie Reddix
Curious George Flies a Kite, Margret Rey
The Most Beautiful Kite in the World, Andrea Spaulding
The Tiny Kite of Eddie Wing, MaxineTrottier
The Sea-Breeze Hotel, Marcia Vaughan
The Wonderful Kite, Jan Wahl
Lucky Song, Vera Williams
The Seventh Mandarin, Jane Yolen
The Emperor and the Kite, Jane Yolen
BOOKS WITH PLANS
Note: Many of these titles are available from the Kite Lines
Bookstore.
Baker, R. and Denyer, M. (1993). Making Kites. London:
Quintet.
ISBN 1-85348-468-7
Bushell, H. (1988). Make Mine Fly. East Malvern,
Australia: Platypress Publishing.
ISBN 0-947286-12-8
Eldin, P. (1990). Crazy Kites. London, UK: Arrow
Books.
ISBN 0-09-964550-5
Evans, D. (1991). Fishing for Angels. Willowdale, ON:
Firefly.
ISBN 1-55037-162-2
Greger, M. (1984). Kites for Everyone. Margaret
Greger, 1425 Marshall, Richland, WA 99352.
Library of Congress Catalogue Card Number: 84-90383
Greger, M. (1990). More Kites for Everyone. Margaret
Greger, 1425 Marshall, Richland, WA 99352.
ISBN 0-9613680-1-4
Hosking, W. (1990). Flights of Imagination: An
Introduction to Aerodynamics. Rev. ed. Washington, DC.:
National Science Teachers Association.
ISBN 0-87355-067-6
Hosking, W. (1992). Kites in the Classroom. Rockville,
MD: American Kitefliers Association.
* Copies of this book available for $5.00 US: E-mail
xd@aka.kite.org
Law, Carol. (1992). The Usborne Book of Kites. London,
UK: Usborne Publishing Ltd.
ISBN 0-7460-0708-6
Michael, David. (1993). Making Kites. New York:
Kingfisher.
ISBN 1-85697-923-7 (lib.bdg.)
ISBN 1-85697-922-9 (pbk.)
Morgan, Paul and Helene (1992). The Book of Kites.
Toronto: Stoddart.
ISBN 0-7737-2499-0
Pelham, David. (1976). The Penguin Book of Kites.
London, UK: The Penguin Group.
0-14-004117-6
Schimmelpfennig, W. (1988). Making and Flying Kites.
London, UK: Hamlyn.
ISBN 0-600-55895-9
Skinner, S., Streeter, T., Modegi, M., and Hiroi, T.
(1997). Kites: Paper Wings Over Japan. New York, NY:
Thames and Hudson.
ISBN 0-500-27942-X
Internet sites (links)
NATIONAL KITE MONTH (NKM)
http://www.kitetrade.org/NationalKiteMonth/teachrsc.shtml
SAFETY
http://www.gombergkites.com/howgen.html
ONLINE RESOURCES FOR KITE PLANS
http://www.win.tue.nl/cs/fm/pp/kites/plans/
http://www.win.tue.nl/cs/fm/pp/kites/ifosk/plans/index.html
http://www.kites.org/tmr/planlink.htm
(scroll down to children's kites)
http://www.planemath.com/activities/flykite/kiteplans.html
http://www.ttl.dsu.edu/woodburg/building.htm
straw tetrahedral -- excellent step by step photos
http://www.xs4all.nl/~pdj/birdkite.htm
Peter de Jong's bird kite
http://www.sound.net/~buckchil/KKWeb/
kids' kite web page and links
http://www.bhc.com/Grenada_kites/jrplans.html
plans by J.R. Tolman -- kite teacher extraordinaire
http://www.kfs.org/kites/simo/knots.htm
useful knots ....close-up photos
http://www.kfs.org/kites/zoo/
http://www.kfs.org/kites/zoo/class.html
created for teachers
http://www.sound.net/~kiteguy/
http://www.total.net/~kite/
scientific info, altitude attempts, by Canadian Richard
Synergy ...
http://www.cbc4kids.ca/general/the-lab/flights-of-fancy/may98/
good photographs of building the paper peace dove kite
http://create.familyeducation.com/article/
