Flight Objectives
The iFLY STEM Program for High School aims to instill the following in students:
- Learn how STEM is used in the real-world.
- Draw and interpret free-body force diagrams.
- Understand the nature of fluids and how they exert forces on solid objects.
- Derive equations to represent physical phenomena.
- Apply engineering principles to think about tunnel design, energy efficiency, and safety factors.
- Understand variability, uncertainty, and error in experimental results.
See the power of the wind.
Watch physics in action! Students will witness flight instructors interacting with objects in the wind tunnel and will discuss the basic ideas of fluid dynamics and how fluids exert pressure forces on objects.After exploring the effect of an object’s size, shape, and weight, they’ll derive the equation for terminal velocity.
Simulate and test terminal velocity.
In this classroom experiment, students will predict their own terminal velocity using measurements and algebraic reasoning. After flying, they’ll compare their predictions to their actual terminal velocity in the wind tunnel and brainstorm reasons for any errors.
Resources for Teachers and Educators
- BROCHURE / Share this overview with parents and administrators.
- TEACHER’S GUIDE / Review a description of the field trip experience.
- STANDARDS ALIGNMENT / Determine where a field trip to iFLY fits into your curriculum.
- PRE-TRIP PRESENTATION / Prepare your students for a fantastic experience.
- PRE-TRIP PRESENTATION SCRIPT / Here’s a script to go with the slides.
- INTERACTIVE PRESENTATION / See the slides our STEM educators use.
- LAB WORKSHEET / See what we’ll investigate in our hands-on lab.
- POST-TRIP ACTIVITIES / Reinforce what your students learned.
- POST-FIELD TRIP SPREADSHEET / Use this spreadsheet to complete the investigation.