Lesson 1
“Culprits in the Backyard”
Total length of lesson: 40-50 minutes
What we will learn
- There are millions of living things on
earth called organisms. - Each organism has specific traits that
make it different from other organisms. - Organisms are made of cells containing genetic information that dictates what
traits they have. - Some organisms have many cells, like
plants and animals. - Most microbes have only single cells.
- Four classes of microbes are fungi,
parasites, viruses and bacteria. - Some microbes, called pathogens, have traits that cause diseases in other
organisms.
What we will do
- Sort images of four different microbes to learn whether you can tell them apart by their appearance.
- Perform math challenges to learn about relative sizes of different microbes.
- Search four different scenes in the backyard to identify a person, plant, or animal that seems to have a “problem”.
Lesson 2
“Using ‘Cool Tools’ to Solve Mysteries”
Total length of lesson: 40-50 minutes
What we will learn
- The nature of the genetic information in a cell.
- How that genetic information affects the traits of a microbe.
- How that information can be used to determine what microbe it is and whether it is a pathogen.
- The nature of four modern, biological tools used in nurseries, veterinary clinics and hospitals to identify pathogens.
- That the basis of these tools depends on basic biological properties of the microbes – their genetic information and the products made with that information.
What we will do
- Sort images of four different microbes to learn whether you can tell them apart by their appearance.
- Perform math challenges to learn about relative sizes of different microbes.
- Search four different scenes in the backyard to identify a person, plant, or animal that seems to have a “problem”.
Lesson 3
“What’s the Culprit?”
Total length of lesson: 40-50 minutes
What we will learn
- The nature of the genetic information in a cell.
- How that genetic information affects the traits of a microbe.
- How that information can be used to determine what microbe it is and whether it is a pathogen.
- The nature of four modern, biological tools used in nurseries, veterinary clinics and hospitals to identify pathogens.
- That the basis of these tools depends on basic biological properties of the microbes – their genetic information and the products made with that information.
What we will do
- Four groups will combine puzzle pieces earned in Lesson 2 playing “Cool Tool” activities.
- Code revealed in combined puzzle pieces will be used to identify the pathogen causing the problem in their part of the backyard. Participants will learn about careers of people who in real life use
“Cool Tools” in clinics, veterinary hospitals and plant nurseries to solve pathogen and disease mysteries.