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THE GLENVIEW JR. FLIGHT ACADEMY
BIHG has had the incredible opportunity to partner with The Glenview Park District to provide elementary school aged programming focused on NASG history and STEM learning.  Throughout 2013-2015, The Glenview Park District offered the initial "pilot program" sessions of the Glenview Jr. Flight Academy at the Park Center.  These programs were developed and taught by BIHG team members for the Park District, and they combined the science of aviation with the history of NASG.  A portion of the proceeds of every class supported the Glenview Hangar One Foundation's mission to keep NASG history alive for generations to come.

In the combined 3rd-5th grade GJFA sessions, our Jr. Aviators embarked on multi-afternoon flight plans which took them from the early days of aviation at Glenview's Curtiss-Reynolds Airport, to the WWII era contributions of NASG, all the way to the excitement of the modern naval jets that flew over our town.  Each class provided the children with a new set of interactive missions to complete in their logbooks - from building blimps and biplanes, to converting wooden steamships into Lego aircraft carriers, to packing a real NASG parachute.  In the course of completing their missions and earning their carrier wings, the Jr. Aviators learned about the 4 forces of flight through experiments and hands on activities.  In the final class of the winter 2014 session, we had the opportunity to engage in a video call with 2 of the restorers of the FM-2 Wildcat at the Air Zoo, and in the final class of the winter 2015 session we were honored to have an NASG veteran join us to demonstrate parachute rigging skills!

GJFA sessions geared towards 1st-3rd graders were offered during the Park District's 2014 summer Kid Zone program.  Through this program, our youngest Jr. Aviators discovered Glenview's connection to aviation pioneers such as Amelia Earhart and Neil Armstrong, while also learning about the forces of flight with experiments and hands-on activities and crafts.  The children explored the interconnection between weather and aviation, built NASG Air Baron mobiles, and discovered the process of jet pack fuel chemical reactions while building their own mock jet packs!

Response to these fun and educational offerings has been very positive!  BIHG expresses its heartfelt gratitude to the Glenview Park District, the Glenview Hangar One Foundation and the Glenview History Center for being our partners in presenting the GJFA programming, and for helping us to demonstrate the phenomenal learning opportunities which arise from preserving and celebrating our local aviation history.  

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