Science experiments -- learning about flight

God sent us a wonderfully windy day today (which is unusual for us in the summer, at least without a thunderstorm accompanying it!) so that we could go out and fly kites. I've been wanting to do this with the kids, since it's a great way to experience lift, drag, thrust, etc -- all the things we've been studying in science -- but it's hard to do in the humid stillness of a southern summer, so we've been waiting for the right conditions. As usual, I had just as much fun as the kids did, I think!

...and here we are working on another science project earlier this week. We are building two gliders, each with different-sized wings, so that we can compare their aerodynamics. We were going to finish and fly them today, but it was too windy to fly gliders...and perfect for kites!