Life Science: Good Friends and Germs

Sample Material

» Table of Contents (PDF)
» What's the Big Question (PDF)
» Learning Set 1 (PDF)

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The Big Question: How can you prevent your good friends from getting sick?

Using some of the practices and skills used by epidemiologists, students learn about unicellular organisms, such as bacteria, as well as viruses that cause disease, cell structure and theory, levels of organization of living organisms, structure, function, and interdependence of human body systems, how diseases affect body systems, and how to track a disease. Students use this information to develop a set of recommendations for staying healthy and helping others stay healthy.

Implements STEM initiative
Uses the Engineering Design Cycle

• animal cells and plant cells
• breathing rate and heart rate
• circulatory system
• communicable diseases
• digestive system
• disease containment
• disease outbreak
• endocrine system
• epidemics
• epidemiology
• excretory system

• gastrointestinal disease
• growing bacteria
• immune system
• immunity
• infection
• inflammation
• lymphatic system
• metabolism and homeostasis
• microbiology
• muscular system
• nervous system
• noncommunicable diseases
• one-celled organisms

• organ system
• organisms
• organs
• reproductive system
• respiratory system
• sanitation and hygiene
• skeletal system
• symptoms
• tissues
• tracking disease
• virus mutation
• viruses

• asking questions
• careful observation
• criteria and constraints
• interpreting data
• keeping good records
• making measurements

• making recommendations
• modeling and simulations
• planning experiments
• supporting claims
• using a microscope
• using evidence
• using scientific knowledge
• using scientific tools

21ST CENTURY SKILLS
Collaboration
Communicating plans and ideas Developing explanations
Finding trends in data
Critical thinking including:

• building on the work of others
• collecting, organizing, and analyzing data
• observations and interpretation using science knowledge
• using evidence to support claims