Kid’s Watching the Drone Fly
My husband Pete is a certified FAA Remote Pilot and today he shared the drone with the children. Before doing the live flight demonstration the kids were able to see the drone up close on their play table. Once they finished looking at the drone up close, we went in the backyard to watch it fly. Of course, the drone also takes video footage, so the kids were being recorded while watching the flight.
The children all thought this was great fun! Pete flew the drone down low and let it hover, then ascended back up high in the sky and dollied back and forth. Once complete, the children looked at the video footage and now they know what they look like from a birdseye view. As we said, “this is what the birds see when you’re playing in the backyard”.
Video of Children Watching the Drone Fly
The Idea for Drone Day
The children always love playing in the backyard! Every time a plane or helicopter flies overhead, they all like pointing it out and everyone looks, even the 1 year old! In fact, sometime’s it’s little Luke who points it out, even before the older kids. So, we thought if they love seeing the planes and helicopters so much, they might also enjoy seeing the drone. As it turns out, we were right!
This is just a small thing, but we can also use the video to teach multiple subjects. The word “drone” begins with the letter “D”. The drone color is gray. What kind of sound does a drone make? How does the drone fly like a bird? How many propellers does a drone have? What do pilots see while flying over? What do birds see when they fly over while we’re at play? As we can imagine, there are many learning opportunities with even one special activity.
A week or so after showing the children the drone, my husband and I enjoyed a stay in the charming Ventura Beach Bungalows. On their website they include some lovely aerial shots of the community and beach. I showed the website to the children and one of the 4 year olds said, “Hey, that photo was taken by a drone!” So you see, she learned the difference between a photo shot from the ground and one shot from above.
We do many special activities here in our home childcare! The idea is for the kids to learn and have fun at the same time. Over the years, this idea of special activities has turned out to be a huge success, so of course we keep doing it!