The Wright Brothers

Worksheets
Table of Contents
Below is a list of all the worksheets included in this document:

1. The Wright Brothers Facts

2. The Wright Writes
3. True or False
4. Watch It Fly
5. Aviation Companies
6. The Wrights’ Lessons
7. Know the Crew
8. Plane Collections
9. Departure Procedures
10. The First Flight
11. Plane Trivia

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 The Wright Brothers Facts

Wilbur and Orville Wright ("The Wright Brothers") are American inventors and
aviation pioneers. They successfully built the world's first motor-operated
airplane. Thanks to their creations, people are now able to travel to other
countries in a very short amount of time.
EARLY LIFE

★ Wilbur was born on a farm near Millville, Indiana, on April 16, 1867, and
Orville was born a few years later on August 19, 1871.
★ The Wright brothers were the sons of Milton Wright and Susan
Catherine Koerner Wright. Their father was a church minister and took
duties as the editor of a church newspaper.
★ The Wright brothers attended public schools and grew up in an
intellectual environment. Wilbur and Orville's parents always
encouraged their children to be curious and pursue intellectual interests.
★ Bishop Wright had an extraordinary influence on the lives of his
children. Because of his mentorship, the Wright brothers became
independent thinkers who were confidence in their own talents, had
strong faith in everything they did, and always persevered during hard
times.
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 The Wright Brothers Facts
★ After their mother's death, Wilbur
and Orville opened a print shop.
They published two local
newspapers and another
newspaper for Dayton's African
American community, known as The
Tattler. The printing shop achieved
a great reputation for the quality of
the papers. This was one of the first
signs that the Wright brothers were
gifted with technical abilities.
The Wrights’ first print shop

The Starting Point

★ In 1892, the brothers opened a new

shop to sell bicycles and do repair
services. The profits for the print shop
and the bicycle shop were later used to
fund their aeronautical experiments from
1899 to 1905.
★ Since they were young, The Wright
brothers always had a fascination with
everything related to flight and watching
people fly. After the death of Otto
Lilienthal due to a glider crash in August
The Wright brothers’ bicycle shop 1896, the Wright brothers began to be
seriously interested in flight.
★ The brothers realized that a successful
airplane would require wings to generate
lift, a propulsion system to move it
through the air, and a system to control
the flight.

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 The Wright Brothers Facts
★ While most flight prototypes at that time
relied on natural factors, such as wind
to control the flight direction, the Wright
brothers preferred to place control of
their machine in the hands of the
operator.
★ After experimenting with various
designs, the Wright brothers decided to
attach helical twists across the wings.
This made the pilot able to raise or
The first glider prototype. The 1901 lower the wing tip at will.
Wright glider was one of the largest
machines that anyone had attempted
★ In 1900, the Wright brothers began to
to fly. test their prototype for take-offs and
landings in Kitty Hawk, an isolated
village on the outer banks of North
Carolina.
★ The first glider prototype was a biplane
that had 15 square meters of wing area
and a pitch control. The brothers flew the
glider as a kite to gather information that
later became very important in the design
of future aircraft.
★ Learning from numerous experiments and
failures when studying their gilder, the
Wright brothers later constructed a small
wind tunnel to gather information on the
behavior of wings of various shapes and
sizes. The 1901 Wright glider in flight. It
was stable enough to glide up to 400
★ They tested between 100 and 200 wing feet (122 meters), but its response to
designs in their wind tunnel to obtain its controls was still unpredictable.
information on the effect of different wing
shapes, tip designs, and gap sizes.

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 The Wright Brothers Facts
POWERED FLIGHT

★ To perfect their aircraft model,

the brothers continued to move
forward with the design and
constructed their first
motor-powered machine. They
built a four-cylinder
internal-combustion engine with
the assistance of Charles
Taylor.
★ This engine functioned to spin The construction of the first
the propellers and make the machine-powered aircraft, with the
aircraft fly on its own without assistance of Charles Taylor
having to wait for strong winds.

★ On December 17, 1903, Orville

★ From 1904 - 1905, they
The Wright brothers flying their first
airplane
made his first successful flight,
covering 36 meters through the
air in 12 seconds. For the first
time in history, a machine had
successfully sustained a flight
under the complete control of the
pilot.
continued to improve their
designs and their machine. By
October 1905, the brothers could
fly for up to 39 minutes at a time,
performing circles and other
maneuvers.

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 The Wright Brothers Facts
GO PUBLIC
★ The claim that the Wright brothers had flown in the air raised curiosity from
many companies and governments. In February 1908, the Wrights signed
a contract for the sale of an airplane to the U.S. Army.
★ Within the next month, they also signed a second agreement with a group
of French investors who were interested in building and selling the Wright
machines under license.
★ With the positive responses from the public and investors, the Wright
Company was formed in 1909 and incorporated Wilbur as president and
Orville as one of two vice presidents.
★ The Wright Company established a factory in Dayton and a flight school at
Huffman Prairie. From this company, the first step towards the rapid
development of commercial aircraft began.

DEATHS AND LEGACY

★ In May 30, 1912, Wilbur died in his bed,
exhausted by business and legal
concerns. Orville continued Wilbur's
leadership of the Wright Company until
1915, when he sold his interest in the
company to a group of financiers.
★ Orville won the 1913 Collier Trophy for
his work on an automatic stabilizer for
aircraft and helped the Dayton-Wright The Wright Company Factory in
Company develop of a pilotless aircraft Dayton, Ohio
bomb.
★ On January 27, 1948, Orville Wright
passed away from a heart attack.
★ Due to their inventions, the Wright
brothers will always be remembered as
the pioneers of airplanes.
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Name: ________________________________

The Wright Writes

The Wright brothers were known as important figures in
the aviation industry. Write down your own biography
summary of the Wright brothers in the boxes below.

EARLY LIFE CAREER AND ACHIEVEMENTS

LEGACY

Orville Wright Wilbur Wright

THE WRIGHT BROTHERS WORKSHEETS KIDSKONNECT.COM

Name: ________________________________

True or False
There are many stories about the Wright brothers from
when they were inventing the plane. Get to know more
about them by coloring the numbered circle on the plane
blue if you think the fact is true and red if the fact is
false.
SOURCE
1 Their flying obsession started with a toy
shorturl.at/ovGJ2 of helicopter.

2 The Wright brothers flew together several

times, along with their father.

3 The Wright brothers once printed a daily

newspaper.

4 The brothers were married and had

families.
5
Neil Armstrong carried a piece of the
5
Wright Flyer with him to the moon.

3
2 4

THE WRIGHT BROTHERS WORKSHEETS KIDSKONNECT.COM

 True or False
ANSWER KEY

SOURCE
1 Their flying obsession started with a toy
shorturl.at/ovGJ2 of helicopter.

2 The Wright brothers flew together several

times, along with their father.

3 The Wright brothers once printed a daily

newspaper.

4 The brothers were married and had

families.
5
Neil Armstrong carried a piece of the
5
Wright Flyer with him to the moon.

3
2 4

THE WRIGHT BROTHERS WORKSHEETS KIDSKONNECT.COM

Name: ________________________________

Watch It Fly
The Wright brothers’ journey of inventing the airplane
has been recorded well in this video. Watch this video
and write down your opinions about the questions
below.

What made the Wright

brothers become
famous inventors in
aviation?

SOURCE
shorturl.at/eRUVX

How important is the

invention of the plane
for you? Explain the
reasons!

THE WRIGHT BROTHERS WORKSHEETS KIDSKONNECT.COM

Name: ________________________________

Aviation Companies
After the invention of the airplane, the aviation industry
grew rapidly, sparking the creation of new aviation
companies. Get to know the biggest aviation companies
in the world by filling in the blanks based on the first
letter of each company.

Guinness World Records

lists this company’s factory
as the largest building in the B
world.

This company built the

largest airplane in the world, A
with the code name A380.

This French company

specializes in building S
rocket engines.

Aside from producing jet

engines, this company also R
produces fancy cars.

This Brazilian company

produces commercial, E
military, and executive
aircraft.

THE WRIGHT BROTHERS WORKSHEETS KIDSKONNECT.COM

 Aviation Companies
ANSWER KEY

Guinness World Records

lists this company’s factory
as the largest building in the
B OEING
world.

This company built the

largest airplane in the world, A IRBUS
with the code name A380.

This French company

specializes in building S AFRAN
rocket engines.

Aside from producing jet

engines, this company also R OLLS ROYCE
produces fancy cars.

This Brazilian company

produces commercial, E MBRAER
military, and executive
aircraft.

THE WRIGHT BROTHERS WORKSHEETS KIDSKONNECT.COM

Name: ________________________________

The Wrights’ Lessons

The Wright brothers are known for their hard work in
designing the perfect aircraft. Name three traits that you
want to have based on the Wright brothers’ values when
it comes to achieving success.

______________

______________

______________

THE WRIGHT BROTHERS WORKSHEETS KIDSKONNECT.COM

Name: ________________________________

Know the Crew

In the modern aviation industry, an aircraft is usually
controlled by several people, known as the crew. Based
on the description of each position, place each position
in the correct gray box.

Captain
FLIGHT DECK POSITIONS
The highest-ranking member of a
flight crew

Pursuer
The person who is responsible for
the cabin crew as team leader

Second Officer
Acts as a relief pilot, traditionally
a flight engineer

Loadmaster
CABIN POSITIONS
A crew member responsible for
loading freight and personnel

Flight Medic
A special paramedic employed on
air ambulance flights

THE WRIGHT BROTHERS WORKSHEETS KIDSKONNECT.COM

 Know the Crew
ANSWER KEY

Captain
FLIGHT DECK POSITIONS
The highest-ranking member of a
flight crew

Captain Pursuer
The person who is responsible for
the cabin crew as team leader
Second Officer
Second Officer
Acts as a relief pilot, traditionally
a flight engineer

Loadmaster
CABIN POSITIONS
A crew member responsible for
loading freight and personnel

Pursuer Flight Medic

A special paramedic employed on
Loadmaster air ambulance flights

Flight Medic

THE WRIGHT BROTHERS WORKSHEETS KIDSKONNECT.COM

Name: ________________________________

Plane Collections
There are different kinds of aircraft in the world. Glue
your favorite aircraft pictures to this worksheet, and
explain why you chose those aircraft as your favorite.

Commercial planes

Military planes

Helicopters

THE WRIGHT BROTHERS WORKSHEETS KIDSKONNECT.COM

Name: ________________________________

Departure Procedures
If you want to go abroad, there are various steps that
you must take in order to enter the airplane. Fill out the
blanks to find out what steps you must take so that
you’ll ready to fly!

___________________ ___________________

___________________ ___________________

___________________ ___________________

SOURCE
shorturl.at/gktyK ___________________

THE WRIGHT BROTHERS WORKSHEETS KIDSKONNECT.COM

 Departure Procedures
ANSWER KEY

Arriving at the airport Fly

Check in Boarding gate

Security check Waiting lounge

SOURCE
shorturl.at/gktyK Immigration

THE WRIGHT BROTHERS WORKSHEETS KIDSKONNECT.COM

Name: ________________________________

The First Flight

In 1903, the Wright brothers launched their first flight in
Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. As a journalist, try to
documnt those moments in your news report and
present it in front of your friends.

____________________________________

THE WRIGHT BROTHERS WORKSHEETS KIDSKONNECT.COM

Name: ________________________________

Plane Trivia
Planes have lots of interesting facts other than its main
function of flying. Read the source link below and give
your answers to unlock the mysteries of planes.

1 Why are airplanes always white?

2 What’s the safest seat on an

airplane?

Why don’t windows and seats always

3 line up on airplanes?

SOURCE
shorturl.at/hiuyT

THE WRIGHT BROTHERS WORKSHEETS KIDSKONNECT.COM

 Plane Trivia
ANSWER KEY

1 Why are airplanes always white?

 
to reflect sunlight and minimize both heat and potential damage
from solar radiation. The color white is like a sunblock for the
airplane.

2 What’s the safest seat on an

airplane?

The passengers who sit in the back seat is proven to be 40 percent

more likely to survive a crash than those in front.

Why don’t windows and seats always

3 line up on airplanes?

Because the airlines decide how many rows of seats there will be
on each plane, and not every airline decides on the same number
of rows.

SOURCE
shorturl.at/hiuyT

THE WRIGHT BROTHERS WORKSHEETS KIDSKONNECT.COM

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