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Depends what we mean by grade school. For young kids (and honestly most adults) I don't think you need much more than this: "A wing, or anything that sends air

Depends what we mean by grade school. For young kids (and honestly most adults) I don't think you need much more than this: "A wing, or anything that sends air moving past it down toward the ground will cause some lift (a push toward the sky), but also some drag (a push on your front toward your back). How much of each depends on the shape of the wing and how it's moving through the air. Really good wings cause a lot of lift without a lot of drag, which is good for not using a lot of fuel to get where you're going or for going really fast."

NovemberWhiskey 2y ago
From my perspective, a much superior explanation would be something like: "A wing causes an aircraft to fly because its shape, and the angle at which it moves through the air, creates regions of higher air pressure under the wing, and lower air pressure above the wing. This causes an upwards force on the wing, and a corresponding reaction force downwards on the air itself."