Flying Kites ~ Mixing Education with Pleasure

Kites are a pleasurable pastime in America though they are thought to have originated in China. The frame of the first kites are said to have been made with silk and bamboo. Sadly, many children today have never ran through a field with the wind in their hair and flown one. This is something we plan to do soon!

The Young Kitemakers by Harry Brooker

We are going to attempt to make our own kites and fly them in our field. You can find directions here if you would like to try this. The art of kite making and flying utilizes the skills of arts and crafts (decorating and creating it), mathematics (measuring all the supplies and cutting to size) and physical education (when complete, you will need to run around to get it going).

It can also cleverly include history and language arts when you introduce books about Ben Franklin and read kite related poems and stories. The science of air pressure can be taught through the example of the kite (here is an easy example for children). As you can see, it is a fun project that is also very educational. I love these types of teaching moments where no one realizes that they are learning! These make for excellent summer projects to keep the minds working and the hands busy.

 

How Ben Franklin Stole the Lightning by Rosalyn Schnanzer

Flying Kites by John Philip Falter

THE WIND

I saw you toss the kites on highAnd blow the birds about the sky;And all around I heard you pass,Like ladies' skirts across the grass—O wind, a-blowing all day long,O wind, that sings so loud a song!

I saw the different things you did,But always you yourself you hid.I felt you push, I heard you call,I could not see yourself at all—O wind, a-blowing all day long,O wind, that sings so loud a song!

O you that are so strong and cold,O blower, are you young or old?Are you a beast of field and tree,Or just a stronger child than me?O wind, a-blowing all day long,O wind, that sings so loud a song!
~ Robert Louis Stevenson

"The wind bloweth where it listeth,

and thou hearest the sound thereof,

but canst not tell whence it cometh,

and whither it goeth:

so is every one that is born of the Spirit."

~ John 3:8

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