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The kite making
workshops are very interesting and educative. The
children like to make something that they can fly
and control with a string. We use PowerPoint
presentations and movie clippings to explain basic
concepts.
In our workshop we
teach basic skills of making kites out of paper,
plastic as well as using fabric. The sessions are
hands on with each child getting involved into
making his own kite.
Some of the kites
are stuck with glue while others have to be stitched
on a sewing machine. For the structure and frames we
mostly use bamboo but can also use graphite or
carbon fiber rods depending on the size of the
kites.
There various designs
we can make are delta kites, cellular kites, box
kites, dragon kites, parafoils, diamond kites, power
kites and stunt kites.
To our credit we
have conducted several workshops for varied age
groups right from six year olds to Engineering
students and continue to do so.
The workshops modules
can be customized for few hours, a whole day or
stretched over a week. Each workshop is customized
taking into consideration the age group, interest of
the participants and the time allotted for the
workshop.
Here is a brief
outline of a typical kite workshop.
Part I –
Introduction
Stories and
Interesting facts about kites. History and new
developments.
A brief on history of
kite and innovative use in earlier days.
Technical information
- forces of flight, science behind flight.
Information about
local clubs.
Part II – Hands on
session
Choosing right
material and alternate options
Kite designs and
cutting
Stitching and sticking methods
Bridle attachments
and angle of attack
Choosing the location
and wind conditions for flying
Repairs and
maintenance
Part III –
Demonstrations and test flying
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