Fly Past

Since the dawn of human evolution, humankind has looked to the sky in awe, wonder and yearning. This desire to take to the sky and soar like a bird pushed and tempted humankind for centuries. In the early years of the twentieth century, two brothers, Orville and Wilbur Wright, achieved that dream. In one short century, we have gone from the few airborne seconds at Kitty Hawk to space shuttles that travel and remain in orbit for years at a time. Fly Past chronicles this miraculous journey from wooden and muslin planes hovering tenuously over the ground to the sleek sophisticated state-of-the-art air and space craft. Fly Past would be useful for classes on American History and Culture, World History, Aviation History and Science and Technology. It is appropriate for middle school and high school.

OBJECTIVES:

Students will learn the history of aviation from the early flights at Kitty Hawk to the space shuttle. They will explore the evolution of flight and aviation technology and the human desire for flight.

NATIONAL HISTORY STANDARDS:

Fly Past fulfills the following National Standards for History for grades 5-12: Chronological thinking, historical comprehension, historical analysis and interpretation, historical research capabilities, historical issues-analysis and decision-making for Eras 7-10.

The Wings of Man

This episode of Fly Past examines the trials, tribulations and success of the Wright Brothers and their modern-day counterparts, the Rutan Brothers.

Discussion Questions

  1. Humankind has always desired to fly. Why does flight enchant us? Why do we desire to take to the skies?

  2. How has this desire for flight been expressed in myth and legend? What are some examples?

  3. The Wright Brothers success at Kitty Hawk ushered in a century of aviation advancements. What prompted the Wright Brothers to take to the sky?

  4. Others had tried to fly before the Wright Brothers with little success. How did the Wright Brothers use the failures of their predecessors in their successful endeavor?

  5. Discuss the role of education in the lives and careers of the Wright Brothers.

  6. The Wright Brothers understood the concept of three-dimensional control. Why was this so important to their success?

  7. The Wright Brothers successfully employed a system of wing warping. What is wing warping? How did they test this system?

  8. The plane wings were made of a fabric called muslin applied at an angle. Why did the Wright Brothers apply fabric at an angle instead of layered in straight rows?

  9. The Wright Brothers were fit and able men. Why did they need athletic ability to fly their planes successfully?

  10. How did the brothers employ the skills of many professions in their endeavors?

  11. After the success at Kitty Hawk, newspapers were reluctant to publish news accounts of the flight. Why?

  12. Discuss some of the difficulties the Wright Brothers faced in creating and flying their planes.

  13. What is the Proteus?

  14. Compare the lives and achievements of the Wright Brothers and the Rutan Brothers.

  15. What is a canard? How did a canard enable the success of Voyager’s flight?

  16. Discuss the problems the Rutan Brothers faced in funding their endeavor.
Extended Activities

  1. Using the medium of your choice, design a model of one of the Wright Brothers’ early planes.

  2. On a map of the world, trace the flight route of the Voyager’s trip around the world.
Related Videos
Primary Sources
  • Follow this link (http://www.wam.umd.edu/~stwright/WrBr/Century.html) to the online version of The Wright Brothers Aëroplane by Orville and Wilbur Wright Century Magazine, September 1908

Air Dates

Classroom Materials