Now you're Talking Soap
A great many people involved in our hobby, including many of the leaders, have expressed concern over the relatively small number of young people involved in aeromodeling. I share this concern, and I rejoice every time I read an article or letter or see a picture that deals with adults sharing modeling with youngsters.
If you have not worked, or at least talked, with young people about some aspect of modeling, you are missing a real treat. (There is one small warning I have to give you about teaching RC flying to kids who have played video games, but I'll deal with that later.)
During the last couple of months I have had the joy of instructing three fine young men between the ages of 12 and 14 in RC model airplane flight, and I may very well have a future Chip Hyde among my students!
I applaud AMA for its Adopt-A-School program, which I know has been used in a great many places, but there are many other ways we can take our fantastic hobby to the youth of America. After all, if the kids aren't coming to us, we need to go to them.
We have the fun and the challenge that many are looking for, but they don't know about it. To get more kids involved we need to go where the kids are, talk with them, answer questions, and invite them to come to a flying field and see what we do.
The suggestions that follow will require some effort, and may require some juggling of schedules, but if we are serious about getting more kids involved in aeromodeling, we will have to put forth some effort.
Where to start: schools and classrooms
The school system in your area may have a volunteer program and/or a speakers bureau for people who are willing to visit classes and give presentations. By signing up, the system will make its schools and teachers aware of you and your hobby.
There are many different classes in which miniature aircraft would definitely get the students' attention, make a lesson more exciting, and help to demonstrate the importance of getting a good education. (I prefer the term "miniature aircraft" over "model airplane"; I feel it more accurately conveys what we do.)
Students in math and science classes would obviously benefit from a presentation involving miniature aircraft, but a modeler who builds a World War I or World War II scale airplane, for example, is usually familiar with the full-scale aircraft and the era and circumstances in which it was used. This could be very valuable in a history class.
All branches of the military use aircraft; do any of the high schools in your area have Junior ROTC programs? The middle- or high-school teacher of technology education (what used to be called "industrial arts") might be interested in a presentation of an airplane, glider, or helicopter and the tools and techniques used to build it.
I have had the joy of addressing a middle-school class that was devoted strictly to aviation, after which I spoke to an aviation club whose sponsor and all of the members were female.
A school in your area may have a science, math, or aviation/aerospace club that meets after school. By getting your hobby placed on a school volunteer list or in a speakers bureau, you may get an invitation to address one of these clubs. You could contact teachers and club sponsors through the school office and tell them directly that you are not only available, but would love to come in and speak to the students. I can almost guarantee you will be called!
Your local schools and school district office may know of other ways in which the knowledge and skills you possess can benefit the students and thus give you the opportunity to introduce model aviation to young people. You may also want to contact the private schools in your area and make them aware that there are members of your club who can speak to their classes and clubs.
Does your schedule permit you to spend an hour or two at a school (perhaps every two weeks) so you could sponsor an aeromodeling club?
Other places to reach young people
- Teachers' Day at the flying field: Hold a "Teachers' Day" to introduce local teachers to aeromodeling and the availability of speakers from your club. Contact your district school board office well in advance to let them know what you would include in your presentation, to determine the best way to get the word out, and to discuss the possibility that attending teachers could get credit toward extending their teaching certificates.
- Scouts: Has someone in your club contacted the Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts in your area to make them aware that you have members who can make presentations to groups? Both organizations have awards involving science and aviation.
- Libraries: Does the public library in your area have programs and presentations for young people? Ask the library about getting on their speakers list and schedule.
- Churches: Some churches have programs where members display their hobby or craft. If your church does this, ask for a table or two.
- Civil Air Patrol: Find out if there is a chapter in your area. The young adults in this Air Force auxiliary are there because they have an interest in aviation-related activities.
- Television and media: Is there a local TV station that produces a program for young people? Call the station and speak with the people involved. They will likely want to see videotape shot at your flying field and still photographs. If you are interviewed, the station may send a crew to your field and introduce a local television audience to model aviation.
Examples of outreach that work
A dozen or so members of my own club spent a very enjoyable Saturday morning helping about 50 Cub Scouts build and fly Delta Darts (otherwise known as AMA Cubs, available from AMA). There were also aircraft for a static display. The kids and the adults had all kinds of questions, and yes, we were asked to come back and do it again.
I was also at a friend's home one evening when I noticed the walls of a darkened bedroom were covered with pictures of airplanes. I asked whose room it was; the dad told me it was his son's room. He wanted to show me something that he and his son were building. He went into the closet and pulled out the framed-up wing and fuselage of a Great Planes PT-40! I then told him that I put nearly 200 flights on my PT-40 before I sold it. That's right — his son is one of those young men with whom I have been working.
What to include in presentations
Presentations could include:
- Photographs and video taken at your flying field.
- A few miniature aircraft for demonstration.
- Copies of model airplane magazines and other printed materials.
- Contact information for club members who are willing to be called for more information.
- A map to your flying field with times when students and their parents can come and see and learn more.
Young people who express interest after the presentation could be given names and phone numbers, and/or directions to the flying field.
A note on video-game players
When you put an RC transmitter in the hands of kids who have played video games, they may have a tendency to "blip" the sticks — move them quickly, then let them go. On the plus side, you will find they already have good hand/eye coordination; they will learn quickly.
Teach them to maintain full control and fly smoothly; help them to get their lefts and rights worked out; and be prepared for some of the most rewarding experiences of your life.
Reach out! Contact people who are working with young people anywhere you can find them. If more of us go to the kids, we just may end up seeing more "kids" at our flying fields.
James R. Fierro
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
