'Offical' Method.

Materials:
For Launcher
Wooden base
Pair of nails (could change.. depending on what I get at Bunnings)
Elastic band/material
Plastic hook

Equipment:
Measuring Tape (measure distance travelled)
1m Ruler
stopwatch (if I am going to measure length of flight)

Method:
Plane Launcher
1. Drill pair of nails into plank of wood 15cm apart
2. Attach on end of elastic band to each nail
3. Cut a hook out of plastic (this will be used to launch plane)
[further info: designing plane launcher entry]

Airplanes
1. Follow the instructions to build the models of airplane required:
- The Arrow
- The Dart
- The Stealth
(detailed instructions on 10paperairplanes.com)

Experiment
1. Construct plane launcher using method above
2. Cut out of an A4 sheet of paper a sheet 20cm x 28cm
3. Construct the first model (The Arrow)
4. Launch the airplane, 1m from the ground and pull back to full length of board each time
5. Simultaneously, time the length of flight (from take off til landing)
6. Observe and record details of flight:
- distance travelled
- length of time travelled
7. Repeat steps 1-6 with a sheet of paper that is 1cm smaller in length and width
(ie. 19cm x 27cm, 18cm x 26cm)
8. Repeat steps 1-7 until the size of paper reaches 12cm x 20cm
9. Repeat steps 1-8 using the other two models (The Dart and The Stealth)
10. Repeat stepts 1-9 three times.

Note: I still might change some of this but this is it for now.. I am really tired and I want to sleep like this peaceful guy:

thinking, thinking (about method)

Some quick ideas, brainstorm regarding my method before I go to sleep:

1. listing materials/equipment required
2. talk about designing plane launcher, details of steps
3. folding the airplanes...? do I need details for that, (I will ask tomorrow)
4. how I will measure & control all variables, must ask about the altitude thing Ms Zhang told me about
5. recording results - what to observe
6. how the experiment will be repeated.

Anyway, since its super late and I gotta wake up really early tomorrow, I'll write my proper method tomorrow, Good night!

How I will conduct the experiment?

My experiment will answer the question:
'How does size of paper used to make paper airplanes affect their flight.'
 
Following the research about the aerodynamics of paper airplanes/planes in general and brief plane launcher design, here is a rough summary of how I will conduct the experiment.

Equipment:

Independent Variables:

- model of airplane

- size of paper

Dependent Variables:

- length of flight

- nature of flight (not sure if I should do this one)

ie, pattern of flight of the plane, how quickly it descends.

Controlled Variables:

- type of paper used

- wind speed in surrounding environment (that will be 0km/h as I will conduct at home)

- length elastic band is pulled back (is there a name of that?)

- height of release

Method 1:

Using the three models of airplanes I had previously decided on, I will launch each model from the plane launcher.

I will vary the size of paper used, starting from an A4 size followed by paper of smaller sizes.

I will then measure the distance travelled by each airplane of each model. Record the results, repeat the experiment, and of course, analysise.

Method 2:

A method similar to the first, with the difference of recording the 'nature of the flight'.
ie, recording the actual flight of the airplane and perhaps graphing it.

zoom, zoom!

If you could have one superpower, of your choice, what would it be?

Mine would be to fly! Flying would just give you so much freedom in this world.

It would give you a better look at the beautiful and pristine clouds that roam our skies.

But since it is not yet possible for humans to do so, the next best thing, are aeroplanes.

I have decided, that my SRP will be an experiment related to aeroplanes. No, not those big Qantas aeroplanes, but the humble, yet exciting, paper aeroplanes.

My experiment will answer the question:
'How does size of paper used to make paper airplanes affect their flight.'

I will be testing the following types of paper aeroplanes:

source: http://www.10paperairplanes.com/