Silver Dart

We took part in a field trip to a replica of the Silver Dart - the first airplane to fly in Canada! This historic flight happened 100 years ago, and so a team of enthusiasts built a half-scale replica and have been touring around to schools to show it to children. Our local homeschool group booked a slot (actually two slots - there were that many of us!) and we were able to see the airplane, watch a DVD, hear a talk from one of the men who worked on the plane:

and the children could sit in it! (Here's Ben while Pip and Tim and a friend look on!) They could use the basic controls to move some of the flaps, and the engine in back was on turning the propellor (slowly!).

The Silver Dart was flown in February 1909 on a frozen lake in the Maritimes. It was built under the direction of Alexander Graham Bell. Part of our Canadian Heritage!!

The children also were able to fly paper airplanes, and examine all sorts of historical information on a huge display board. Here's what Tim thought of the afternoon: