https://www.smithsonianmag.com/rss/blog/smithsonian-science-education-center/RSS feed for Smithsonian Science Education CenterenTue, 09 Sep 2025 16:00:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/blogs/smithsonian-science-education-center/2025/09/09/Bringing-the-Smithsonian-into-Classrooms-for-40-Years/The Smithsonian Science Education Center is Transforming K-12 Education through Science, in collaboration with communities across the globeTue, 09 Sep 2025 16:00:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/blogs/smithsonian-science-education-center/2025/09/09/Bringing-the-Smithsonian-into-Classrooms-for-40-Years/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/blogs/smithsonian-science-education-center/2020/11/30/travel-world-and-learn-about-nutritional-guidelines-pick-your-plate-global-guide-nutrition/The Smithsonian Science Education Center recently launched the Spanish-language game, "Pick Your Plate! Guía Global de Nutrición!" This game educates players about dietary guidelines by highlighting the food, currency, music, and nutritional guidelines from eight different countries across the world. Students are invited to virtually travel and eat their way across the world as they are exposed to a variety of food facts from each country. From tubers in Benin to avocados in Australia, learn why each food item is significant to its respective nation through "Pick Your Plate!" and beyond.Mon, 30 Nov 2020 19:54:39 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/blogs/smithsonian-science-education-center/2020/11/30/travel-world-and-learn-about-nutritional-guidelines-pick-your-plate-global-guide-nutrition/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/blogs/smithsonian-science-education-center/2020/04/21/how-does-disease-transfer-animal-human-and-back/COVID-19 has taken over world headlines since it first emerged in December of 2019. As the disease spread into a pandemic, scientists have scrambled to learn as much about it as quickly as possible. An early bright spot in the overwhelmingly negative news about COVID-19 was that it was believed pets could not get or carry the virus. However, recently a tiger at the Bronx Zoo tested positive for COVID-19, which opened the questions: Can I infect my pet or another animal? And can an infected animal infect me?Tue, 21 Apr 2020 20:05:27 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/blogs/smithsonian-science-education-center/2020/04/21/how-does-disease-transfer-animal-human-and-back/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/blogs/smithsonian-science-education-center/2019/02/13/free-smithsonian-activities-national-engineers-week/Engineering is the practice we use to solve problems. Because of its importance in our world, there is a celebration for it every February. This year’s National Engineers Week (E-week for short) is February 17–24. Here are two ideas for your E-week celebration. The first is a hands-on build that can be easily adapted to your time and classroom. The other is a digital challenge called Tami’s Tower, which can be played online or downloaded to an Apple, Android, or Amazon device.Wed, 13 Feb 2019 18:16:18 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/blogs/smithsonian-science-education-center/2019/02/13/free-smithsonian-activities-national-engineers-week/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/blogs/smithsonian-science-education-center/2018/12/17/introducing-tamis-tower-new-smithsonian-science-game/Tami’s Tower: Let’s Think About Engineering is an educational engineering design game that will help teach kids how to design a solution to a problem using basic engineering design principles.Mon, 17 Dec 2018 15:42:38 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/blogs/smithsonian-science-education-center/2018/12/17/introducing-tamis-tower-new-smithsonian-science-game/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/blogs/smithsonian-science-education-center/2018/11/19/smithsonian-science-education-center-releases-smithsonian-science-makerspaces/Smithsonian Science for Makerspaces will bridge formal science education and the exciting makerspace movement by helping educators and teachers engage with digital and physical technologies within the context of science, technology, engineering, arts and math (STEAM) by asking them to make something new.Mon, 19 Nov 2018 15:49:24 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/blogs/smithsonian-science-education-center/2018/11/19/smithsonian-science-education-center-releases-smithsonian-science-makerspaces/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/blogs/smithsonian-science-education-center/2018/10/29/7-animals-were-made-halloween/Ghost bats, witch fish – it seems like animals all over the world are permanently dressed up for Halloween! Thanks to the Encyclopedia of Life, supported by the Smithsonian, we found seven of these ghoulish creatures in honor of October 31st. If you thought this holiday was just for bats and spiders, think again!Mon, 29 Oct 2018 20:05:42 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/blogs/smithsonian-science-education-center/2018/10/29/7-animals-were-made-halloween/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/blogs/smithsonian-science-education-center/2018/09/25/best-things-wings/The Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History is home to some of the most valuable jewels on the planet. To me, the best ones in the museum aren’t in the Gems and Minerals exhibition. The most colorful, dazzling jewels in the museum have wings, and they are in the Butterfly Pavilion!Tue, 25 Sep 2018 18:00:22 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/blogs/smithsonian-science-education-center/2018/09/25/best-things-wings/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/blogs/smithsonian-science-education-center/2018/09/12/fun-facts-about-red-pandas/People once thought the red panda was related to bears or raccoons, but they are actually their own genus, Ailuridae. Within the genus, there are two species: fulgens fulgens and fulgens refulgens. Both species live in Eastern Asia, in high-altitude, temperate forest. Learn more about the red panda. Wed, 12 Sep 2018 19:08:28 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/blogs/smithsonian-science-education-center/2018/09/12/fun-facts-about-red-pandas/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/blogs/smithsonian-science-education-center/2018/09/04/go-back-school-resources-smithsonian-science-education-center/We have curriculum, professional development, and digital media resources to help you start the new school year off right!Tue, 04 Sep 2018 14:33:50 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/blogs/smithsonian-science-education-center/2018/09/04/go-back-school-resources-smithsonian-science-education-center/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/blogs/smithsonian-science-education-center/2018/08/21/zeppelins-airships-engineering-design-action/Ferdinand Adolf Heinrich August Graf von Zeppelin was an engineer whose self-named company made the first successful rigid airship. The path from his inspiration during a balloon trip in Minnesota in 1863 and the successful flight of Zeppelin LZ1 in 1900 is a great example of the engineering design process in action.Tue, 21 Aug 2018 18:00:37 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/blogs/smithsonian-science-education-center/2018/08/21/zeppelins-airships-engineering-design-action/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/blogs/smithsonian-science-education-center/2018/07/30/how-design-zoo-exhibit-four-steps/Imagine you are asked to design a zoo exhibit for your local zoo. I know, this is a stretch but "bear" with me! Let’s break it down into the steps you might take if this were an engineering project. As with any engineering problem, the first thing you need to know are the requirements. Requirements are made up of criteria and constraints.Mon, 30 Jul 2018 17:40:12 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/blogs/smithsonian-science-education-center/2018/07/30/how-design-zoo-exhibit-four-steps/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/blogs/smithsonian-science-education-center/2018/05/16/endangered-species-day-amphibian-ark/Endangered Species day is May 18! Learn why amphibians are so important and what Smithsonian scientists are doing to prevent amphibian populations from declining. Wed, 16 May 2018 18:10:10 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/blogs/smithsonian-science-education-center/2018/05/16/endangered-species-day-amphibian-ark/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/blogs/smithsonian-science-education-center/2018/04/23/morse-code-day-messages-wire/Morse Code Day is April 27, 2018. Learn how the electric telegraph revolutionized how quickly messages could be received.Mon, 23 Apr 2018 14:23:32 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/blogs/smithsonian-science-education-center/2018/04/23/morse-code-day-messages-wire/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/blogs/smithsonian-science-education-center/2018/04/10/scotlands-jurassic-island-what-scientists-can-learn-footprints/New evidence, in the form of footprints, has made scientists rethink sauropods as being purely land dwellers. Tue, 10 Apr 2018 20:58:05 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/blogs/smithsonian-science-education-center/2018/04/10/scotlands-jurassic-island-what-scientists-can-learn-footprints/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/blogs/smithsonian-science-education-center/2018/04/02/jane-goodall/What words do you think of when you think of the name Dr. Jane Goodall? Chimpanzee researcher. Visionary scientist. UN Ambassador for Peace. Expert. Leader. How about failure? Maybe not. But like every scientist before her and every scientist who will follow, Goodall encountered failure in the pursuit of science.Mon, 02 Apr 2018 17:22:56 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/blogs/smithsonian-science-education-center/2018/04/02/jane-goodall/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/blogs/smithsonian-science-education-center/2018/03/19/world-water-day-dont-take-your-water-granted/Can you imagine turning on your kitchen faucet and no water coming out? That may happen to the 3.7 million people living in Cape Town, South Africa. For World Water Day, learn how we get the water that we need. Mon, 19 Mar 2018 18:39:06 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/blogs/smithsonian-science-education-center/2018/03/19/world-water-day-dont-take-your-water-granted/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/blogs/smithsonian-science-education-center/2018/02/07/why-does-curling-stone-curl/Curling is named after the unique turning that occurs at the end of the curling stone's path on the ice but what causes this curling motion? Wed, 07 Feb 2018 20:43:32 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/blogs/smithsonian-science-education-center/2018/02/07/why-does-curling-stone-curl/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/blogs/smithsonian-science-education-center/2018/02/01/falling-style-science-ski-jumping/The objective of ski jumping is to jump as far down the hill as possible, but ski jumping is not simply flying as far as the athlete can. Style is also a large component of it. Ski jumpers are judged on style and distance in reference to the K line. This means ski jumpers must use physics to help them fly to the K point or farther. So what exactly is the science behind ski jumping? Thu, 01 Feb 2018 16:50:45 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/blogs/smithsonian-science-education-center/2018/02/01/falling-style-science-ski-jumping/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/blogs/smithsonian-science-education-center/2018/01/04/how-do-birds-navigate/Researchers have discovered how some birds may use magnetism to navigate long trips.Thu, 04 Jan 2018 19:43:07 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/blogs/smithsonian-science-education-center/2018/01/04/how-do-birds-navigate/