Build A Plane, a nonprofit group based in California that helps school groups to build their own aircraft, held its fourth annual Teachers Day at EAA AirVenture this week in Oshkosh. The program, which ran on Tuesday in the EAA Museum, provided a free day at AirVenture for about 150 teachers from around the country, along with a series of forums about how to incorporate aviation into their classrooms to help teach kids about science, technology, engineering and math. “We are amazed by how many great opportunities are out there to use aviation to engage and motivate kids to learn,” said Lyn Freeman, Build A Plane president. “Today’s students respond to real-world applications, and aviation really captures their attention.” The Teachers Day program was co-sponsored by the General Aviation Manufacturers Association and EAA.
Build A Plane also runs Kids Across America, which helps kids to raise money for the program and compete to win prizes, including free training for a private pilot certificate. The program also is always looking for more aircraft donations, because there is a long waiting list of schools that would like to have one. AVweb’s Mary Grady spoke with Freeman on the field at AirVenture; click here to listen to the podcast.
