Up Up and Away!
by Cathy Gundersen
April 30, 2008
On April 30, students at Highland Elementary traveled to Midway Elementary to attend a Hot Air Balloon assembly which was sponsored by the Midway PTO. The chief pilot, Carroll Teitsworth, who has been a full time professional balloonist since 1978 and has logged over 2900 hours of hot-air ballooning, presented the program.
Captain Carroll began with a thirty-minute teaching session that included illustrations of colorful slides and spoke all about how balloons work and what they do. This talk touched on history, science, language, pilot licensing, character, careers and more. Next came the demonstration with a real, live on-site hot air balloon. The pilot inflated the hot-air balloon right before the audience’s eyes. Students had the chance to see the balloon up close and personal, in all its glory and were even invited inside the inflated balloon. To end his program, the students went outside to see the basket of the hot air balloon and were able to see how it works to keep the balloon afloat. Students were fascinated and truly enjoyed this program.
Click on the link to view pictures from the
program. 
Hot Air Balloon Assembly
