Welcome Back to SMILE!
As schools begin opening their doors and students and teachers start diving into their curriculum, The SMILE Program welcomed its teachers, old and new, at our Teacher’s Workshop to prepare for another amazing year in SMILE. At our SMILE Teacher’s Workshop, Rhode Island teachers from across the state received information on how to run a SMILE Program including recruiting students, tracking attendance and activities, attending grant-funded field trips, and more!
Teacher’s Workshop
On August 20th, our Teacher’s Workshop was held for the elementary, middle, and high school SMILE teachers. Following the introduction, which included key updates, program goals, and essential information for the year, teachers transitioned into their Grade Level Meetings.
Our SMILE Elementary School Teachers kicked off their meeting with a refresher on engineering concepts. Led by Elementary School Coordinator Brenda Dillmann, teachers engaged in activities based around the scientific method, buoyancy, aerospace engineering, and Newton’s laws of motion. Here are the activities planned for the fall:
- Saving Fred
- Graphing with Skittles
- Clay Boats: Buoyancy & Density
- Cartesian Divers
- Ski Jump Marbles
- Peppermint Racecars
- Soaring Satellites
- Paddle Boats
Our SMILE Middle School Teachers were successfully led by our Assistant Director & Middle School Coordinator Jo Ann Basel through the semester’s activities. This fall, we’ll reinforce themes of buoyancy, Newton’s third law of motion, and the engineering design process as the students gain footing in activities themed around electric circuitry, solar energy, potential and kinetic energy, and robotics. Here’s the activity list:
- Index Card Tower
- Saving Fred
- Pizza Box Solar Oven
- Paper Table
- Bristle Bots – Electric Circuits
- Watercrafts
- Confetti Launcher
- Ping Pong Ball Catcher
- Balloon Rocket
Finally, URI Student High School Co-coordinator Allie Sithtaphone led our high school teachers through an exciting blend of advanced STEM activities and career readiness work. With graduation approaching for many of our SMILE students, we’re focused on equipping them with the skills to thrive beyond high school. This semester’s STEM activities explore the paths of molecular biology, biomedical engineering, forensics, pharmacy, and more while our pre-professional activities focus on career exploration, job applications, interview etiquette, and money management skills. Here’s what’s in store for our high schoolers:
- Gel Electrophoresis (Molecular Biology)
- Build an Operation Game (Electrical Engineering)
- Design a Heart Valve (Biomedical Engineering)
- Delayed Release Pill (Pharmacy)
- Liquid Electrolyte Levels (Chemical Engineering)
- Water Level Detector (Basic Circuitry)
- Build a Speaker (Sound Engineering)
- Forensics Powder Analysis
- Forensics Hair & Fiber Analysis
- And Career Readiness Activities!
SMILE Scholarships
We are happy to announce the recipients of the Saul Nulman SMILE Scholarship. This gives up to six SMILE seniors a $500 scholarship for college. Here’s this year’s recipients:
- Aidan Greenless from Woonsocket
- Ashley Koala from Woonsocket
- Sam Biastre from Newport
We are pleased to be able to help them attend the University of Rhode Island and Rhode Island College. In the past 31 years, SMILE students have gone to 376 different universities.
A Word of Gratitude
We at SMILE want to send a heartfelt thank you to our teachers. You are truly the backbone of our program. Whether it’s sparking curiosity, building confidence, or offering support, your dedication makes all the difference. You’re not just guiding students through STEM-based extracurriculars and helping them succeed in science and engineering; you are helping them grow as learners and individuals. We’re so grateful for the care and commitment you bring every day. We send our gratitude to our dedicated SMILE elementary, middle, and high school teachers from Central Falls, Newport, South Kingstown, West Warwick, Westerly, Woonsocket, and the newest member of our SMILE family, the Johnston school district!