The Magic School Bus: Taking Flight [VHS]
What keeps airplanes aloft? How do birds fly? How do pilots steer a plane? These questions and more are explored in this installment of the award-winning science videos from Scholastic. Ms. Frizzle's class is taking part in a model-airplane contest to explore the principles of aerodynamics, when Mrs. Frizzle shrinks herself and a few class members so that they can fly their plane themselves. When the remote control breaks, the kids in the airplane must learn to fly it. Those remaining on the ground must somehow turn the Magic Schoolbus into an airplane so they can rescue their classmates. Through trial and error, the whole class discovers that in order to fly, an object needs to have wings, moving air, power, and steering. They discover firsthand how birds' wings act as propellers, and how birds and planes steer with rudders and flaps. Finally, with some help from an eagle, they learn to take off, fly, and land. Kids will learn about aerodynamics by observing what works and what doesn't as the characters try to stay aloft. Or, as Ms. Frizzle puts it: "Sometimes you have to do the wrong stuff to find out what the right stuff is supposed to be."--Elisabeth Keating