As lovers of the Great Outdoors, the Gwinnett Clean & Beautiful team loves any opportunity to combine some of our favorite pastimes with Gwinnett County’s award-winning parks. Since April is National Kite Month, it’s the perfect opportunity to do a little eco-friendly crafting, find the ideal multi-use field or green space at a local park, and take your DIY kite out for its inaugural flight. But first…

A Little Kite History

The first kites were believed to have been created in China, although there is evidence that kites also made their first appearances in Malaysia, Indonesia, and the South Pacific. While some were used for recreational purposes, they were also crafted from natural materials like leaves and reeds to be used as fishing instruments. The first recorded account was in China around 200 BC. Legend holds that General Han Hsin of the Han Dynasty flew a kite over the walls of a city he was attacking to measure how far his army would have to tunnel to reach past the defenses. By the 13^th century, Chinese traders had spread the kite craze to Korea, India, and the Middle East. In 1295, Marco Polo described kites in his writings about his travels, and by the 14^th and 15^th centuries, kite flying hit the skies over Europe. 

While it proved to be a common curiosity among children from the start, kite flying also had several scientific applications. In 1749, Alexander Wilson & Thomas Melville of the University of Glasgow in Scotland made the first recorded weather experiments using kites. Marking perhaps one of the most famous historic kite-flying events, Benjamin Franklin conducted electrical experiments using a kite in a lightning storm in 1752. By the late 1800s, kites were used regularly for meteorological observation. Avid kite flyers – Orville and Wilbur Wright – gleaned inspiration from flying box kites for the world’s first successful airplane.

How to Build Your Own Kite

While anyone can go out and buy a kite, it adds another layer of engagement to make one of your own. Needless to say, Gwinnett Clean & Beautiful recommends repurposing materials to create your kite…

1. Gather the materials you’ll need to make your kite – newspaper or paper grocery bags make terrific foundations for your kite’s body, but some designs involve old t-shirts or plastic bags, as well. 
2. You can search the woods near your house for sticks that will serve as the “spine” and the “spar” of your kite – which can be lashed together in the shape of a “t” using thin garden twine or butcher cord to form the frame. 
3. Cover the frame with your newspaper, grocery bags, or fabric and fix it in place using scotch or masking tape. 
4. Attach a string (again using thin garden twine or butcher cord) to the spine long enough for your kite to take to the air and fly.
5. Decorate your kite using markers or crayons. You can also decorate your string with a variety of colored ribbons.
6. Head to your favorite Gwinnett County Park. If you need help determining which park to visit, go to https://www.gwinnettcounty.com/departments/parksandrecreation/ourparksandfacilities. 

Make it an Event

A terrific pastime to pursue as a family: watch the weather for a sunny yet windy day, pack your kite and a picnic, and head to one of Gwinnett County’s local parks. Chat about the benefits of being outdoors, try your hand at kite flying, and consider ending your outing with a quick sweep of the park to collect litter other parkgoers may have left behind. Take photos of you with your DIY kite, and be sure to share them on Gwinnett Clean & Beautiful’s Facebook (@gwinnettcb) or Instagram (@greengwinnett) pages along with your vote for best Gwinnett County park. Now get outside and have some FUN!

Source: History of Kites | AKA American Kitefliers Association

KB 3/20/25