howtosmile blog

Aaaaaaaarrrrrrre you running a pirate themed camp or event this summer? Or planning ahead for Talk Like a Pirate Day, September 19? Well shiver me timbers—it's time for pirate science! 

This year's Association of Science-Technology Centers (ASTC) conference in Albuquerque, New Mexico will include a public event called "Science in the Park." In Tiguex Park, science educators attending the conference from around the world will show off their best outreach activities, prototypes, and demonstrations to local students and members of the science museum and informal science education communities.

Humans have yet to stand on the surface of Mars, but zooming in on the red planet with NASA's billion-pixel interactive image is almost like being there. The new online interactive lets Earth-bound explorers zoom ultra close-in to the Martian surface, from more than 228 million miles away.

Anne Scanlon’s classroom is cold, wet and smells like fish and seaweed. She wouldn't have it any other way. That’s because Scanlon is not only an informal educator, but one of 100 specially trained volunteer scuba divers at Monterey Bay Aquarium in California.

The American Library Association has named Howtosmile.org to its Great Websites for Kids, among the recommended Sites for Parents, Caregivers, Teachers and Others. ALA's Association for Library Service to Children recognized Howtosmile.org as an exemplary website.

Sound "sandwiches" were the newest item on the science menu at the 2013 White House Easter Egg Roll. The Association of Science-Technology Centers served up 2,500 Exploratorium Sound Sandwich activities as part of the annual event's expanded science exploration area. 

Mechanical engineer Alice Agogino is not anti-Barbie, by any means. Growing up she liked Barbie dolls, and they inspired her to design and sew her own clothes as a teenager. That hobby gave her tools she would later put to good use as an engineer. So it’s not surprising that when the National Academy of Engineering asked for input to help Mattel designers equip a new Computer Engineer Barbie®, Agogino rose to the challenge. 

Think big by thinking small, very small, during NanoDays. NanoDays is a growing, coast to coast festival of educational programs about nanoscale science and engineering, and the potential impact of nano research and products on the future. Howtosmile.org has lots of nano-themed activities to help you expand or launch your own NanoDays explorations. 

Howtosmile.org has been voted one of this year's Top 100 Educational Websites by Homeschool.com, which has more than a million members. 

“STEAM capitalizes on artistic interest to help spread STEM to a wider audience,” says Brad Peroney, Program Development Coordinator for Pittsburgh's Carnegie Science Center. Peroney is collaborating with staff at Pittsburgh’s Andy Warhol Museum. In fall 2013, they will launch new afterschool programs where elementary learners can explore the science in Warhol's artworks and artistic process. Programs will be held at libraries, community centers and other sites around Allegheny County, Pennsylvania.