a recorder is played with the body of the instrument pointing away from you, and you blow into a mouthpiece and in my opinion, it's one of the easiest wind instruments to play. recorders are also often made from plastic.
flutes, on the other hand, are played with the body pointing to the side, and there isn't a mouthpiece. there's just a hole, for you to blow through, but you have to have your lips positioned in a certain way. the notes are produced by pressing on keypads that cover the holes, whereas on a recorder, you cover the holes directly with your fingers, and you can produce more notes with the flute. flutes are usually made from metalas well, from what i've seen anyways ^^
i tried the flute once, but i couldn't get a sound out of it, so i played the clarinet instead. it's easier, but i kept making squeaks all the time, no matter how much i practised -_____-