SMART Teams

Students Modeling A Research Topic

What do you get when you combine enthusiastic high school teachers and their students, scientists excited about their research, and Rapid Prototyping technology? SMART (Students Modeling A Research Topic) Teams! In this multi-faceted program, students develop teamwork as they delve into the molecular world, explore science as a process and not just a collection of facts, and work closely with a researcher to understand and model the structure-function relationship of a protein the researcher studies. After designing and building a model of the protein using Rapid Prototyping technology, SMART teams create an oral presentation explaining their work to a lay audience and a poster which is presented to a scientific audience.

SMART teams developed as an extension of our summer professional development course, Modeling the Molecular World, allowing teachers to continue to explore the molecular world in depth with their students. There are three different SMART Team programs:

  • Local SMART Teams in the Milwaukee area join CBM staff for training on a few Saturday mornings beginning in September.
  • HHMI SMART Teams work with our partner institutions throughout the US to receive training and connect with researchers in their area.
  • Remote SMART Teams who don´t reside close enough to one of the SMART team training centers receive training from their SMART team teacher with materials provided by the CBM on a schedule unique to each remote team.

Register a SMART team today!

For a historical view of SMART teams, check out:

Image:NCRR Logo