1  Variation and Classification

In the play, we see Jackie trying to act like a bird. Can the class remember what he does? (Eating flies, trying to fly, making a nest.)

Put out a selection of animal pictures (or small world play animals if available) including mammals, birds, amphibians, reptiles and fish. How would the class sort them? Ask children to come and sort them in various ways and to give reasons.
Using some of their reasons, show how to categorise animals as mammals, reptiles, birds, amphibians and fish. There are various websites which will do this quickly such as:
http://www.sheppardsoftware.com/content/animals/kidscorner/
classification/kc_class_again.htm

Give out the original pictures and ask children to group themselves, giving reasons for their decisions.

2  Animal Jigsaw

After experimenting practically with pictures or small world play creatures, the children can try the animal jigsaws: (Appendix 7)
Set 1 – mammals
Set 2 – amphibians
Set 3 – birds
Set 4 – reptiles
Set 5 – fish

How to make the jigsaws:
Print out a copy of the jigsaws (Appendix 7) and laminate them. Now take each set and cut them with diagonal lines. The pieces are now jumbled up and children select, for example, all the fish. If they choose correctly, the pieces will fit together.
 

3  Animal Mix up Sheet (Appendix 8)

Jackie is not sure if he is a human or a bird. Can you cut out the pieces and see if you can put them and stick them together to make a man and a bird?

4  Bird Feeding and Identification

As the winter months approach, talk to the class about why birds might need more care. Try making a bird feeder such as this simple one from pine cones.

You will need:
Large, open pinecone    
Plate
Butter knife
Suet or fat
Birdseed
Ribbon or string
Scissors

What to do:
First cut a long length of string or ribbon to hang the bird feeder and tie it around the pinecone.

Next use the knife to spread the fat around the pinecone.
Now sprinkle the birdseed onto the plate and roll the pinecone in the seed.

Finally hang the bird feeder on the tree and watch the birds come to feed!

Use a chart to identify which birds are feeding each day and mark them on a tally chart. Use this to make and interpret bar charts.

5  Paper Aeroplane Experiments

Many of the children will already know how to make a simple paper aeroplane. For a more complex version follow these instructions:

1  Fold a sheet of paper in half lengthways to make a crease. 
   Then Unfold it.

2  Fold in corners top corners into the crease.

3  Fold in corners to the centre crease.

4  Fold the dart in half along the crease.

5  To make the wings, fold down one side to the central fold. 
    Turn the dart over and do the same again.

6  Hold the dart underneath with your thumb and forefinger,
    and throw it.

• Discuss with the class how the planes could be made so that they were not all the same: different sizes, different weights (card, thin paper etc) different colours. Put out a selection of materials to make planes. Also add materials such as paper clips to add weight.

• With the class, formulate a question they would like to answer, such as “Will some paper aeroplanes fly further than others?”

• Ask the class to make predictions, giving their reasons why. Are, size or weight likely to make a difference? What about the colour?

• Now test the aeroplanes, taking measurements and recording them. What do the class find? What made a difference? Can the children say “This aeroplane will fly the furthest?”

• Finally, was the test fair? For example, did some children throw harder than others? Were some planes tested outside and some inside? What happens if there is only one change at a time?

6  Making a Gyrocopter

1. Cut out a strip of paper 16 cm long and 4 cm wide (try using pinking scissors if available).
2. Cut a slit through the middle of the paper, about 7.5 cm to make wings.
3. Fold down the wings in opposite directions from one another.
4. Attach a paper clip to the bottom of the strip for weight.
5. Stand up high and drop the gyrocopter – it should spin to the ground.

 7  A Short History of Flying

NB Children may be particularly interested in this subject as 2009 marks the 100th anniversary of Louis Bleriot’s flight across the English Channel in a monoplane which had a wooden propeller, bicycle wheels and an engine about as powerful as a lawnmower!

• Around 1000Bc the Chinese made kites for use in religious ceremonies. They used them to fly above their enemies to spot where they were.
• People have long tried to fly like birds by making wings with feathers and light wood attached to their arms. However, the muscles of the human arm are not like those of a bird so these attempts ended in disaster. Some people jumped from all towers but broke their legs or killed themselves in the process.
• Leonardo da Vinci was not only a famous artist and sculptor but he was also an inventor. He was fascinated by the idea of flight and spent over 40 years working on ideas, making the first real studies of flight in the 1480s. He made over 500 drawings and many notes about complicated flying machines. However, these notes were in mirror writing so that people could not find out about his discoveries and his work around flying were not known about until the 1800s. People have tried to build models based on his drawings and some have flown but only for very short distances.

Leonardo’s machines were based around his studies of the flight of birds and their wings but most of his findings were wrong.

However, he did make some very important drawings for an Ornithopter which required arms and feet to pedal together. The modern day helicopter is based on these.

• • In 1783 brothers Joseph Michel and Jacques Etienne Montgolfier became famous as inventors of the hot air balloon. Smoke from a fire blew hot air into a silk bag attached to a basket. The hot air made the basket rise because it is lighter than cool air. The first passengers were a sheep, a rooster and a duck and they travelled for over a mile. Later that year, two men travelled in the balloon.
    
    
  • Starting around 1800, George Cayley experimented with kites and worked for 50 years to design different gliders. He worked on the wing shape and added a tail. He also thought about what could power the glider.
    
    
  • In 1891 German engineer Otto Lilienthal was the first person to design a glider that could fly long distances. He flew more than 2500 times but a strong wing made him crash and killed him.
    
    
  • In the same year, Samuel Langley built a model of a plane with a steam-powered engine. He tried to build a full sized version but it was too heavy to fly.
    
    
  • Orville and Wilbur Wright spent years reading about research into flight and began experimenting with balloons, kites and gliders. In 1903 they took off in a plane with a petrol engine.
    
    
  • During the 1920s people were able to fly across the Atlantic in hydrogen powered passenger airships. However, because they caught fire easily, there were many disasters and the flights were stopped.
    
    
  • Now, people are able to fly long distances with relative safety and people have even flown to space.