To introduce students to the scientific method through a hands-on and engaging activity involving paper airplanes. Please conduct the experiment described below and then submit a brief reflection about the experience addressing the items in the reflection section of the instructions.

Materials:

• Sheets of paper
• Rulers or measuring tapes
• Stopwatches or timers
• Space for flying paper airplanes

Procedure:

1. Observation and Question (10 minutes):
   • Consider an aspect of creating a paper airplane. Come up with a specific question about the process. For example, "How does the size of the paper airplane affect its flight distance?" or How does the type of paper (e.g., construction paper, newspaper, printer paper) impact the flight distance of a paper airplane? Or What is the effect of different wing designs (e.g., rectangular, triangular) on the stability and flight pattern of a paper airplane? (These are just examples! You can come up with your own.)
2. Research (10 minutes):
   • Conduct a brief research session to gather information about paper airplane design and principles of flight from the internet.
3. Hypothesis (10 minutes):
   • Formulate a hypothesis related to your question. For example, "I hypothesize that larger paper airplanes will fly a greater distance."
4. Experiment (20 minutes):
   • Create paper airplanes of different sizes (or of different materials) based on their hypotheses.
   • Designate an area for flying the paper airplanes.
   • Fly the paper airplanes and measure the distance each one travels.
5. Data Collection and Analysis (15 minutes):
   • Record your data, including the size or type of their paper airplane and the distance it traveled.
6. Conclusion (15 minutes):
   • Share your findings with the class.
7. Reflection (10 minutes):
   • Describe your experience and process. How did this activity relate to the scientific method? What did you learn about the process from completing this activity? What would you do differently if you were to complete this "research" again?