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Day 3: FAA Part 107 + Drone Flight Basics

Lesson Overview
Time 50 minutes
Objectives Understand what FAA Part 107 covers and why it exists; complete the drone safety briefing; demonstrate basic drone flight (takeoff, hover, controlled landing)
TEKS d(2)(A)
Deliverable Signed Drone Safety Briefing (proves the student understood the safety rules) + each student successfully takes off, hovers 5 seconds, and lands at least once
Materials Classroom drones (1 per team of 3-4, DJI Tello Education or equivalent), printed Drone Safety Briefing handout (2 pages), open indoor flight space (cleared classroom or gym), projector for FAA Part 107 overview, masking tape to mark takeoff zones

Warm-Up (5 min)

WARM-UP: Why do you think the FAA requires a certification to fly drones commercially? List 3 things that could go wrong if anyone could fly a drone wherever they wanted.

Take 4-5 student responses. Common: hit a plane, crash into a person, fly over an airport, spy on someone, fly into a hospital helicopter zone, drop on a car. Bridge: every one of those is a real reason the FAA created Part 107. Today we cover the rules.

Activity 1: FAA Part 107 Overview (12 min)

Source: FAA Drone Zone, faa.gov/uas

Project the FAA Part 107 overview on the screen. Cover the key points:

  • What it is: The federal certification required to fly drones for ANY commercial purpose
  • What "commercial" means: Getting paid to fly, OR flying for a business, including selling photos, inspecting buildings for money, or filming a wedding
  • What it covers on the exam: Airspace classes, weather, regulations, emergency procedures, drone maintenance
  • How to get it: Study + take a 60-question multiple-choice exam at an FAA testing center
  • Minimum age: 16 years old (so 7th graders can start studying now and test the day they turn 16)
  • Cost: ~$175 for the exam
  • Career impact: Required for almost every drone job, agriculture, construction, real estate, emergency services, film, delivery
  • The Irving ISD connection: Students at Irving High can earn FAA Part 107 through the Drone Engineering pathway

Show one airspace map from the FAA's B4UFLY app so students see what "controlled airspace" looks like. DFW airport is surrounded by Class B airspace, drones cannot fly there without ATC permission.

Activity 2: Drone Safety Briefing (10 min)

Source: Drone Safety Briefing handout (provided by teacher)

Distribute the printed Safety Briefing. The briefing covers:

  1. Pre-flight checklist: battery charged, propellers attached, controller paired, surroundings clear
  2. Takeoff zone rules: only takeoff inside the marked tape zone
  3. Altitude limit: for indoor drones, no higher than 6 feet
  4. Bystander rules: never fly directly over a person, always announce "drone up"
  5. Emergency landing procedure: how to drop the drone safely if it goes out of control
  6. Battery safety: never use a swollen or damaged battery, do not charge unattended
  7. End-of-flight checklist: power off drone, return controller, log the flight

Walk through every rule. Each student signs the bottom of the briefing acknowledging they read and understood it. The signature is the entry ticket to flying, no signature, no controller.

Facilitation Tip

Take the safety briefing seriously even though they are mini-drones. The point is to model the same safety mindset that real Part 107 pilots use. A student who treats the safety briefing as a joke today will treat real safety rules as a joke at age 18. That habit forms now.

Activity 3: First Flight — Takeoff, Hover, Land (20 min)

Move the class to the cleared indoor flight space (or push desks to the walls). Mark a takeoff zone (1 ft x 1 ft tape square) for each team.

Phase 1: Demonstration (3 min)

Project a short DJI Education video showing the basic 3-control method (throttle, yaw, pitch/roll) OR demonstrate live with a teacher controller. Cover only: - Takeoff: Push throttle gently up - Hover: Hold throttle steady at low altitude (3-4 feet) - Landing: Pull throttle gently down to the ground

Do NOT teach turning, flips, or advanced moves today. The point of Day 3 is the basics.

Phase 2: Team Rotations (15 min)

Each team has 4 students and 1 drone. Rotate every 3-4 minutes:

  • Pilot: operates the controller
  • Spotter: watches the drone, calls out warnings
  • Logger: checks off whether the pilot achieved takeoff, 5-second hover, and controlled landing
  • Coach: gives the pilot calm verbal guidance

Every student must rotate as pilot at least once. The achievement bar is low: takeoff, hover for 5 seconds, land safely. That is enough for Day 3.

Facilitation Tip

The first student to fly will probably crash within 10 seconds. Normalize it. Have the team logger check "Attempted" rather than "Succeeded" and rotate to the next pilot. Crashing IS the learning, they figure out which control direction is too aggressive.

DOK 2: How would you describe the safety procedures you followed today and why each one matters for professional drone pilots flying real-world missions?

Exit Ticket (3 min)

EXIT TICKET (Short Constructed Response) · Printable PDF:

  1. THREE things covered on the FAA Part 107 exam:

Topic 1: _____

Topic 2: _____

Topic 3: _____

  1. For EACH topic, write ONE specific reason it matters for safe drone operation (example: "Airspace classes matter because a drone near DFW airport could get sucked into a jet engine"):

Topic 1 why: ____________

Topic 2 why: ____________

Topic 3 why: ____________

  1. Earliest age I can take the FAA Part 107 exam: ____ (years old)

(d(2)(A))

Differentiation

  • Support: Allow students who are anxious about flying to spot first. They can pilot in the next class period. Provide a printed control reference card with arrows pointing to each control on the controller. Pair with a confident peer pilot for the coach role.
  • Extension: Research the FAA Part 107 sample test questions online and try to answer 5 of them. Bring back a list of which ones the student got right and which ones they need to learn.
  • ELL: The drone activity is hands-on and naturally accessible across language levels. Provide a bilingual control card: Throttle = Acelerador, Hover = Suspender, Land = Aterrizar, Takeoff = Despegue, Crash = Choque. Pair with a bilingual peer for the verbal coaching role.