What’s inside: Get the nitty-gritty on what’s needed to master paper airplane folding for your next handicraft lessons.
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Paper Airplane Folding for Handicraft
Once you learn origami, the next step is to master paper airplane folding. Your goal will be to have between 3-6 models that you learn by heart in a semester. I’ll show you ideas to get it done!
Origami background
In a beginning semester of origami, you will have mastered the following skills, which are necessary to begin paper airplane folding:
- Folding accurately and carefully so that corners and edges match.
- Creasing sharply on any folded edges.
- Knowing basic terms: folding, creasing, unfolding, the “base”, and the difference between a “mountain fold” and a “valley fold”.
- Identifying the center line or diagonal.
These basic skills will allow you to go on to more complex models or more thematic models, like airplane folding.
Who else is this good for?
Besides those who have some mastery in origami folding, this handicraft is fun for aviation enthusiasts and families who like to play together.
Approach
I highly recommend that if you are going to specialize your paper folding for a semester, that you select 3 to 6 models to learn by heart. This means that you can fold them without instructions by the end of the semester.
3 vs. 6 models: Which?
If you’ve got students on the beginner end of the scale, just concentrate on 3 models.
But if you have older students or those who really want to practice, you may want to let them explore to find their favorite 6 models for them to learn. Let them learn the same 3 as the younger kids, but then encourage them to test out of a few other models. You can even make it a science experiment – which model flies longest, fastest, straightest… etc.
Make sure your students are all using care and precision to make their models. No sloppy work!
Best Books on the subject
What’s nice about the books today is that they often come as a kit with paper and fold patterns clearly marked.
However, the downside is that often they go out of their way to make “new”” and “different” models when they are just making it overly complex.
I’ve found two of the better books: one for overall fun beginner book and one with more theory or interesting aviation information suitable for the advanced student. They have similar names but are not the same.
Beginner
- Ultimate Paper Airplanes for Kids: The Best Guide to Paper Airplanes!: Includes Instruction Book with 12 Innovative Designs & 48 Tear-Out Paper Planes, by Andrew Dewar, 2015.
Advanced
- The Ultimate Paper Airplane: With Step-by Step Instructions for Seven Different Models by Richard Kline, 1985. Kline presents 7 models which demonstrate the novel (at the time) KF airfoil design.
Library Suggestion
Also, a good idea is to do a library binge and check out all the books on the subject at your library to find your favorite models. Just don’t start tearing out pages.
Best Websites on the subject
Hands down, the Art of Manliness has the best article on this very subject. He lists his 3 favorite must-learn models and why they are the best. He includes one plane for each level – beginner (the Bulldog Dart), intermediate (the Harrier), and expert (the Hammer).
You can also find a step-by-step instructions that are filterable by level, name, type, etc., for an extraordinary number of airplanes at Fold N Fly.
Best YouTubers with tutorials
The most recognized YouTuber specializing in paper airplanes is Foldable Flight. He’s got a lot of information and has good instructions for after you have experimented some.
I suggest that if you are going to learn via YouTube tutorials, that you prescreen the videos and that you look for very specific lessons. It’s easy to go down a rabbit hole and waste a lot of time here.
Final Project Test Day
As a final project in your handicraft semester, you should plan a test flight day. Have all your kids make their best models to test on this day.
Record the models that fly the furthest, fastest, and straightest. And be sure to see which ones fly the most loop-d-loops if that is the purpose of the model!
Two Favorite things about Paper Airplane Folding
Finally, I have to mention the why for us and paper airplane folding.
First, we love the competitive nature about paper airplane folding. But it’s more about competing for excellence – competing against yourself and your last model. Can I make a better airplane? How do I make it faster? How can I direct and control its flight?
And finally, we love the names of the models. It adds a spirit of fun to the handicraft!
I hope you enjoyed this look into using paper airplane folding for your next handicraft semester.
