4th grade scientists have been quite busy learning about the scientific method while also applying their knowledge of concepts learned in our unit on force and motion. We have carefully worked through each step of the scientific method–question, research, hypothesis, experiment, collect data, analysis, and conclusion–to discover the answer to the question, “How will different styles of wings affect how far a paper airplane will fly?” 

We also spent some time learning the importance of understanding the variables involved in our experiment before we do any testing. After making our plan, each student decided which type of paper to use, which would be our constant in this experiment. Then, they created a paper airplane for test flight #1. We took our work outside on a sunny and calm day, and launched our airplanes. We used a tape measure to measure the distance that our airplane flew and performed three test flights. Since we ran out of time to complete all our test flights on day 1, we needed to move it to the next day. Unfortunately, the weather on day 2 was not so sunny and calm, and we needed to adjust and move our experiment into the annex. We understand this may skew our results but we we were willing to give it a try anyway! We hope that day 3 provides calm weather to finish our experiment, analyze our data, and draw a conclusion about which wing style worked the best.