Welcome!
Aeromodelling is
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more that skills
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attitudes
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stratgies
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wellbeing
Gliders are universally engaging and this gives us an opportunity for motivating children to learn. But Aeroschool goes on to take a journey through flight and aircraft configuration so there is always more for the deep learner.
T&S Aeroschool provides for children who learn best with
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tangible
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demonstrable
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specific
concepts to explore for themselves.
Our curriculum is a staged step by step progressive one that builds on observations and skills through to designing and flying RC aircraft.
Old School V New School - some Questions TO FORM A BRIEF
ACCESS
Aeromodelling is traditionally a home activity where people have resources, a local club and plenty of time and space. Aeromodelling has been a rich breeding ground for budding engineers. We shall refer to it as modelling but these are real aircraft - just smaller!
Qu1: how can we make aeromodelling accessible to schools and youth clubs?
PACED
Aeromodelling has traditionally attracted and engaged with engineers and the engineering mind. The problem is that engineers arent necessarily the best qualified to 'teach' what they know to children.
Qu2: how can we disseminate flight theory to children in a way that is immediately engaging and rewarding?
CYCLE TIME
Aeromodelling has traditionally been associated with balsawood, tissuepaper, sheds, attics and long winter builds.
Qu3 How can we use modern materials and processes to shorten the building process with skills more relevant to young children?
INTERACTION WITH GLIDERS
Flying has traditionally been done outdoors -
Qu4 how can we fly more in smaller spaces and at the same time observe the flying plane at close quarters?
ITERATIVE LEARNING
We learn by our mistakes. However it takes time to develop the tenacity to recover from a serious disaster. Unlike cars and boats, aircraft are frequently destroyed by mishaps.
Qu5 How can we recover more quickly fom disaster and so make iterative learning more pallatable?
CASCADING
The aero community is rich with people who have a deep understanding of flight.
Qu6 How can we bring expert knowledge to bear at the right time for it to be useful to children?
ISOLATE VARIABLES
Many model planes are available, some with motors, rubber bands, catapults etc. However, these tend to mask any trim adjustment made to an airframe.
Qu7 How can we provide a learning resource that isolates the variables of flight so that learners can identify cause and effect more accurately?
PHYSIQUE
Young children find launching a glider quite difficult becasue of their short arms. Catapults are available but these provide a high rate of accelaration that is difficult to quantify. Education sessions often result ina mele of flights around a room which can be frustrating and even hazardous.
Qu8
How can we control the launch so as to regulate the acceleration, direction and thrust accurately and make it possible for young children to launch gliders independently and safely.
Not just skills but attitudes and strategies
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Tenacity
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Resiliance
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Courage
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Confidence
These are all seen to result from making things fly. Flight is magical but it is also hazardous and making mistakes can be catastrauphic. We embrace failure as a necessary part of progress. This is not just lip-service, it's central to aeromodelling.
Aeromodelling is where terminology leads to litaracy and performance leads to numeracy. Communication and organisational skills are essential to teamwork and executive skills, organisation, agency all extend from the need to be deliberate and rigourous in making quality products as a team.
AEROSCHOOL UK USP
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45 years of aeromodelling experience
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32 years of teaching experience
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12 years of independent education experience
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5 years of curriculum formulation, testing and delivery
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consecutive wins in national aero team challenges since 205
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now delivering activities and resources to national centres, organisations and charities
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mobile STEM bus bringing aeromodelling to you
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Well equipped eductional centre in midlands to educate and train teachers and students alike
Aeroschool Products
Launching
Children struggle to throw a glider with any consistency at all and competition is impossible without a standard launch. Once the launch has been perfected children become MORE engaged and determined to achieve flight because an aspect of luck has been isolated and reduced.
Our launcher standardises the launch. Please don't cut costs by launching by hand. You'll lose the interest of your best engineers. If you don't control the launch direction and velocity the more 'critically' minded will realise that throwing skills, or worse -' luck' plays a big part in success; they'll disengage. If you can't afford our launcher or DIY kit - please make your own! Once launching is trusted as 'fair' and equitable the true 'engineers' will spend hours perfecting their creations.
Products - see our online shop
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Cardboard glider kits
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Custom kits for model aircraft you can buy yourself
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Schemes of work
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Gravity launcher
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Payload Pal - BMFA Payload Challenge resources to get you to the show!
Achievement Schemes you can do
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National Model Flying achievement schemes
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Bronze CREST awards for testing aero principles
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Silver and Gold CREST awards for entering the BMFA Payload Challenges.
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Scouts badges etc
Hybrid Delivery and Resourcing
We run online learning and group video sessions and can provide you with all software and video resources you need to run your own club.
We can even laser cut your designs in cardboard and post them back to you!
Training and Consultancy
Mark is available to train you to deliver our unique resources and or train your staff to deliver Aeroschool UK curriculum.
Aeroschool History
2013-2017 Brockford Barn
2013
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Aer0nauts was launched as a small team of students from the local USAF base came to us to rebuild a Radio controlled Biplane
2014
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Experimenting with laser cutting and aircraft manufacture with a growing team of home educated students and one from a local youth training provider.
2015
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Entered the BMFA Payload Challenges for schools and universities with 'Pig'. The plane barely flew for reasons beyond our then understanding! However we won the prestigious 'Jettex Trophy' after a series of crashes and rebuilds that gained us a lot of sympathy!!
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2016
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A new team of home eds. Complete review of our understanding of flight theory. We took the 'Pig' basic format and developed two competing upgrades led by two home educated students. This internal friendly competition led to a single solution with increased empennage area, coned nose, streamlined propeller intake and dynamically cooled motor. Winners of the BMFA Distance Payload Challenge against three other teams including one from China. Do watch the video if you haven't seen it!
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2017
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A new team again this time exploring a front mounted tractor propeller and a thorough modelling of 20 wing/tail combinations around a basic torpedo fuselage. A last minute change from plywood construction to Depron leading to a our second win of the BMFA Distance Payload Challenge against two other teams.
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Plus a second entry, our first in the 'Quantity Challenge' (tennis balls) with 'The Mighty Dorito' built single handedly by our eldest student came 5th overall against multiple University entries.
2018
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Three teams now!!
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Our youngest team of three ages 11-14 entering the 'Egg-lift challenge' winning their category with 'Yolko-Oh-No'
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Team of three entering the Distance Challenge (Block of wood) came second
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Team of two entering the Quantity Challenge (Polystyrene Balls) with 'B-Ryan' failed to compete.
Example of catastrophe!!
As an example; the three images below are of an aircraft our team built in 2018 - tested and flew for the competition, but that (I) crashed in testing on the day of the competition because of what they later discovered was inadequate wing area. The team worked overnight to rebuild it from the bits and although due to damaged servos did not make it back into the competition it subsequently flew beautifully with the addition of larger wing and a geared motor. The following year the team returned with a huge wing and 3D printed geared motor design that won the event. This was perhaps an extreme example.
2019
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Three teams again;
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SpaceEggs winning their challenge against two other teams.
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'Distance' sporting two wing options in the design process; a delta v a straight wing winning their challenge against two other teams
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'Quantity' winning their challenge against 17 universities.
2019 - Present: Freestone Lodge Northamtonshire Uk
2020 - 21
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Locked down!
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developing online and mobile provision and local home Education links.
2022
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Wrote Aeroschool Curriculum
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July Aer0camp with Bus at Shuttleworth
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Discovery Zone Educational provision at Shuttleworth airshows
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Teaching from the Bus on our site
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2023
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School based activity sessions
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Building new workshops
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Teaching from the Bus on farm site
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Discovery Zone Educational provision at Shuttleworth airshows
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Ran aeroschool workshops at Summerhill Festival of Childhood
2024
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Completed workshops
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Attended all Shuttleworth centenary events and airshows with the bus as hosptitality for us and Airfix
2025
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First payload challenge in six years with new Aer0nauts team in - we win again this time jointly with a school in Manchester.
2026
Teamed up with the Air League
