Off We Go into the Wild Blue Yonder

Kansas Aviation Museum in Wichita, Kansas

I visited the Kansas Aviation Museum over winter break. I have always loved all things aviation. When I was younger, there was a restaurant called 391st Bomb Group in West Palm Beach, Florida that was World War II themed, and was right next to the airport. It was one of my favorite restaurants, because I could watch planes land while eating my meal. So, when I heard about this museum, I decided this was a place that I needed to check out.

If you are talking to kids about this museum, you may want to define aviation for them. A simple definition might be that aviation has to do with everything connected with flying a plane. You could also have kids look up the defintion of aviation.

This museum is right outside of McConnell Air Force Base. Three things that stuck out the most to me when I visited the museum were the full sized planes that I could get so close that I could touch the plane, the art deco building, and the children’s area.

Art Deco

This building has many examples of the art deco style, which is known to have simple, clean lines, with a streamlined look. The building that houses this museum was once the main terminal for Wichita. Since Wichita is right in the middle of the United States, it was an ideal place for refueling. One fun fact is that Fred Astaire danced in the atrium of this building while waiting for his plane. The atrium is a large open space in the middle of the terminal/museum. He was one of many famous people who graced the corridors of this building. I loved the art deco architecture in this building. There are unique designs in the atrium on the ceiling and on the floor. I was especially wowed by the art deco designs on the outside of the front of the building. If you are working with a budding artist, this could be a cool place to see as a part of a unit on art deco design.

Getting Up Close and Personal

Outside of the museum, there are a good number of planes that visitors can go right up to. I did not count how many planes there were, but I think there were at least 10 planes. Big planes, small planes, US Air Force planes, military planes… If your future pilot has an interest in planes, there will be at least one plane that interests him or her.

Resources

Hands On Activities- The Kansas Aviation Museum created this webpage with activities for students to do. I have not tried them all, but some of the activities I did enjoy doing are the wind glider activity, the straw rocket, and the paper airplanes.

How Things Fly- The Smithsonian Air and Space Museum has created this website to teach students about forces of flight, gravity and air, aerodynamics, propulsion, structures and materials, and flight dynamics. It has lots of information as well as some ideas for activities for kids.

Activities

Paper Planes- The museum allows kids to launch their paper planes over the balcony. I would suggest having your kids create their own paper airplane before they come. The following website has different patterns and instructions for paper airplanes: Teach Engineering- Paper Airplanes.

Learning Center- There is a learning center with all kinds of activities. Some of the activities include a child sized traffic control tower, a play ground, a cockpit, a simulator (where kids can practice landing a plane), and different toys and books focused on planes.

Little Aviators- This link provides information about a program for kids at the Kansas Aviation Museum on Fridays.

Tours- This link provides information about a variety of different tours that are available at the Kansas Aviation Museum.

Overnight Programs- This link provides information about overnight experiences available at the Kansas Aviation Museum.

A tip from someone who has been there.

The museum has many different exhibits. The exhibits could use a little freshening up. That being said, I overheard a conversation while at the museum that made me think that the leadership of the museum is working on giving the museum exhibits a face lift. Even with the exhibits being a little dusty, I think this museum will still be exciting for kids. The learning center, the planes outside, and the traffic control tower…these things make the trip worth it.