Objective

By the end of this lesson, you will be able to apply algebraic concepts to create and modify paper airplanes, as well as understand the relationship between variables and flight performance.

Materials and Prep

• Blank sheets of paper
• Pencils
• Rulers

No prior knowledge is required for this lesson.

Activities

1. Create a Basic Paper Airplane

   Start by folding a sheet of paper into a basic paper airplane shape. Experiment with different folding techniques to see how they affect the flight of the airplane. Keep track of the distance the airplane travels and any observations you make.

2. Modify the Paper Airplane

   Using algebraic concepts, modify the basic paper airplane by adjusting variables such as the length of the wings, the angle of the wings, or the weight distribution. Make predictions about how these modifications will affect the flight performance, and then test them out. Record your results and compare them to your predictions.

3. Create a Graph

   Using the data you collected from the previous activities, create a graph to visually represent the relationship between the variables you modified and the flight performance of the paper airplane. Analyze the graph to draw conclusions about the impact of each variable on the flight.

Fifth Grade Talking Points

• "Algebra is a branch of mathematics that uses letters and symbols to represent numbers and quantities."
• "In this lesson, we will be using algebraic concepts to modify paper airplanes and see how different variables affect their flight performance."
• "Variables are like boxes that hold numbers or quantities that can change. In our case, we will be changing variables like wing length, wing angle, and weight distribution."
• "We will be making predictions about how these changes will affect the flight of the paper airplane, and then testing them out to see if our predictions were correct."
• "By collecting data and creating a graph, we can visually see the relationship between the variables we modified and the flight performance of the paper airplane."
• "Analyzing the graph will help us draw conclusions about which variables have the most significant impact on the flight."