5B and The Spread of Disease

This past unit in Natural Science has been about infectious and non-infectious diseases and how to stay healthy which is perfect for this time of year when the weather is getting colder and people are getting sick with fevers and colds. 5th grade learned about antibiotics, bacteria, viruses, diseases such as cancer and diabetes as well as how to stay healthy from these illnesses. Staying healthy included eating fruits and vegetables, doing exercise, getting eight hours of sleep and keeping clean by washing our hands and brushing our teeth.

On the last class before the holidays we performed an experiment to show the spread of disease.

The Spread of Disease Activity

To do the experiment we used plastic cups in groups of two and three. The students poured water into other cups in different groups to represent "coughing or sneezing" on another student. One group's cup was infected with a mixture of baking soda. After, I poured a few drops of homeade phenolphthalein solution (indicator for basic solutions) and the water turned a light green. The darker the green the more infected the group was.

The class then had to determine which group was originally the "infected" one and how now other groups had been contaminated.

Pouring water to spread disease 

Recording the results 

Sharing the infection: "coughing or sneezing" 

They are not infected!