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Science lesson plan · 9th grade (Year 10 in England) · 45 minutes

Pathogens, immunity and vaccines

Human body and health

CCSS NGSS.HS-LS1-2England: KS4 Combined Science: Health, disease and the development of medicines

Objective and success criteria

Students will: Pathogens, immunity and vaccines.

  • I can answer questions on today's skill on my own, without help.
  • I can explain each step and say why it works.
  • I can check my answer and spot a mistake.

Before and after

Needs first: Heart, blood and circulation

Leads to: Viruses, bacteria, fungi and protists that cause disease

Materials: Stopwatches, Body diagrams, Mini whiteboards, A diagram or short video clip of the idea, Printed student sheet (below).

Warm-up · 5 min

  • Quick retrieval from earlier learning (Heart, blood and circulation). Students answer on mini whiteboards.
  • Show answers together and note who needs support in the main task.
  1. Hana counts 24 pulse beats in 15 seconds. What is the pulse rate in beats per minute? → 96Prompt: How many lots of 15 seconds are there in one minute?
  2. What does blood carry to every part of the body? (air bubbles / undigested food / bones / oxygen and nutrients) → oxygen and nutrientsPrompt: Cells need these to release energy.
  3. Blood and circulation: which statement is NOT true? (Blood in veins is blue. / Red blood cells carry oxygen. / Capillaries are tiny blood vessels where substances pass to and from cells. / White blood cells help fight infection.) → Blood in veins is blue.Prompt: One of these is a famous myth.

Hook · 5 min

  • Ask everyone to find their pulse, then jump for 30 seconds and find it again.
  • Share the objective: Pathogens, immunity and vaccines. Read the success criteria together.

I do: model it · 10 min

  • Work through the example out loud, saying why you do each step, not just what you do.
  • Example: What type of pathogen causes malaria?
  • Step 1: Protists are single-celled organisms; malaria is spread by mosquitoes.
  • Step 2: So the answer is: protist
  • Answer: protist
  • Pause after each step and ask a student to say what comes next.

We do: guided practice · 10 min

  • Do these together. Students try each step on whiteboards before you reveal it.
  • Use the hints as prompts rather than giving the answer.
  1. What type of pathogen causes influenza (flu)? (virus / bacterium / fungus / protist) → virusPrompt: Colds and flu cannot be treated with antibiotics.
  2. Which is a way to reduce the spread of flu? (taking antibiotics / eating more sugar / sharing cups / washing hands and covering coughs and sneezes) → washing hands and covering coughs and sneezesPrompt: Flu spreads in droplets in the air and on hands.

You do: independent practice · 10 min

  • Students work on the student sheet. Circulate and check the first two answers of every student early.
  • Students who finish: write a question of their own for a partner, with the answer.

The 8 questions are on the student sheet below, with answers in the key.

Exit ticket · 5 min

  • Two questions on their own. Sort answers into got it / nearly / not yet to plan the next lesson.
  1. Disease: which statement is NOT true? (Vaccines contain antibiotics. / Heart disease is a non-communicable disease. / Skin is a barrier that stops many pathogens entering. / Mosquitoes spread malaria.) → Vaccines contain antibiotics.Prompt: Think about what each treatment really does.
  2. How does a vaccine protect you? (It makes you ill so you learn to avoid germs. / It trains white blood cells to make antibodies quickly if the real pathogen arrives. / It kills every bacterium in your body. / It is an antibiotic.) → It trains white blood cells to make antibodies quickly if the real pathogen arrives.Prompt: Vaccines contain a harmless form of the pathogen or its antigens.

Watch out for

  • Everyday meanings of words getting in the way of the science meaning: define key words explicitly.
  • Remembering facts without the reason: ask "why?" and "what is the evidence?"

Support and stretch

Support

  • Review first: Heart, blood and circulation.
  • Use concrete materials: stopwatches.
  • Give the first step of each question, or a partly worked example to finish.
  • Pair with a confident partner for the guided practice.

Stretch

  • Move on to: Viruses, bacteria, fungi and protists that cause disease.
  • Explain a common mistake in writing and how to fix it.
  • Write a word problem that uses today's skill, then solve a partner's.

Homework and more practice

Free online practice with hints and printable worksheets for this skill: eurekami.com/science/grade-9.

Free lesson plan from eurekami.com/lesson-plan-builder

eurekami

Pathogens, immunity and vaccines

Name

Date

Score/ 8

  1. Question 1

    What do antibodies do?

    • A. carry oxygen
    • B. attach to specific antigens on pathogens, helping destroy them
    • C. digest food
    • D. clot the blood

  2. Question 2

    What type of pathogen causes malaria?

    • A. virus
    • B. bacterium
    • C. fungus
    • D. protist

  3. Question 3

    Disease: which statement is NOT true?

    • A. All bacteria cause disease.
    • B. Mosquitoes spread malaria.
    • C. Skin is a barrier that stops many pathogens entering.
    • D. Antibiotics kill bacteria but not viruses.

  4. Question 4

    What type of pathogen causes athlete's foot?

    • A. virus
    • B. bacterium
    • C. fungus
    • D. protist

  5. Question 5

    Why should a doctor not give antibiotics for a cold?

    • A. Antibiotics only work on fungi.
    • B. Colds are not diseases.
    • C. Antibiotics make colds worse.
    • D. Colds are caused by viruses, and antibiotics do not kill viruses.

  6. Question 6

    Which is a way to reduce the spread of flu?

    • A. eating more sugar
    • B. washing hands and covering coughs and sneezes
    • C. sharing cups
    • D. taking antibiotics

  7. Question 7

    What type of pathogen causes gonorrhoea (gonorrhea)?

    • A. virus
    • B. bacterium
    • C. fungus
    • D. protist

  8. Question 8

    How does a vaccine protect you?

    • A. It kills every bacterium in your body.
    • B. It makes you ill so you learn to avoid germs.
    • C. It is an antibiotic.
    • D. It trains white blood cells to make antibodies quickly if the real pathogen arrives.

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Answer key: Pathogens, immunity and vaccines

  1. 1. B. attach to specific antigens on pathogens, helping destroy them

  2. 2. D. protist

  3. 3. A. All bacteria cause disease.

  4. 4. C. fungus

  5. 5. D. Colds are caused by viruses, and antibiotics do not kill viruses.

  6. 6. B. washing hands and covering coughs and sneezes

  7. 7. B. bacterium

  8. 8. D. It trains white blood cells to make antibodies quickly if the real pathogen arrives.