With all that is going on, I thought it would be helpful to share a blog post about Microbiology!! I have read news reports saying that you should just spend time with your kids and not say much to them about what is going on! I agree that we should be having quality family time, however I disagree with that saying nothing to children about what is going on. Hence, this blog post.
I have a BS in Biology and MS in Biotechnology (biodefense/biosecurity) so I have been getting a lot of questions from friends and family, so I wanted to share my expertise with you, so you can share it with your littles. My daughter was made very aware of the CoronaVirus Pandemic by classmates and this was causing her a level of anxiety and stress, so I wanted to empower her with the knowledge to understand what is actually going on. After explaining everything, she felt safe again and knows everything will be okay.
In this post, I make you a Microbiology expert for your kids! I will give you the language to explain what is microbiology, explain viruses and how your immune system works all in a very general sense for young children to understand! At the end of this post, I have provided resources to help you explain this topic with your little ones and a craft!
What is Microbiology?
According to The Microbiology Society, “Microbiology is the study of all living organisms that are too small to be visible with the naked eye. This includes bacteria, archaea, viruses, fungi, prions, protozoa and algae, collectively known as ‘microbes’.”
Translation for Kids
First let’s talk about the word “microbiology” !! That sounds like a big complicated word but it is a super simple word after we break the word down like a puzzle piece. (see printable)
“Micro” is a fancy or scientific way of saying small. But this small is so small that you can’t see it with your eyes. Look at the point of this pencil, micro is even smaller than that!
“Bio” is how scientist like yourselves would say living things like a beautiful flower. Can you think of any other living things? Can you think of things that are not living? (couch, table, etc)
“Logy” means to study something or learn a lot about one particular thing like all your wonderful knowledge about ( I would say LOL dolls and sharks for my kids lol) .
So, if we add all of those words together we get …drum roll please…
Microbiology means learning about very small living things that we can’t see with our eyes.
The tiny living things are called microorganisms (microbes for short) by scientists. Can you think of any words used for microbes that you may have heard? (germs, cooties, etc)
Types of Microorganisms
(This list is just to be thorough, however I will only discuss viruses and bacteria in this post, I did not go over this list with my littles)
- Bacteria
- Virus
- Archaea
- Fungi
- Prions
- Protozoa
- Algae
So, given microbes are so super small, how do you think scientist see them? Do the scientist use a machine and shrink themselves down to microbe size? 😂😂 Well, scientist do use a machine, but they do not get smaller, they make the microbes BIGGER! The machine they used is a tool called a microscope.
Microscopes are tools that help scientists see the really tiny stuff.
Scientists use microscopes to learn about the shape, size, and habits of all the things that make up the very teeny tiny world around us. Microbes are not scary. In fact, some types of microorganisms help you! You have microbes called bacteria that help you break down your food. You even get friendly microbes when you eat yummy yogurt! 😋
Another type of microbe is a virus. A virus is a microbe that can only grow and make a similar copy of itself inside of something else like an animal or tree or even you. It cannot survive without something else. Recently, you may have been hearing about a family of viruses called Coronaviruses. Yes, viruses have family. Virus families are groups of viruses that a very similar like you are similar to your Mom, Dad, and siblings. This may be a new family to you, but scientist have known about the Coronaviruses since the 1960s. In fact, some members of this family cause the common cold. So, if you have ever had a little cold, you could have already met a member of this family of viruses.
So, what is different now?
A novel (new) member of this family started making people sick and this sickness started to spread very quickly. This sickness is called COVID-19 and for some people it can make them really sick and they need to go to the hospital to help them get better!
But there is no need to panic or worry because there are things that SCARE viruses?
What do you think that can make a virus super scared and want to hide under their bedsheets? 😂😂😂
Things that scare a virus
- Soap
- Hand sanitizer
- Immune System
Let’s dive into your immune system, the one thing a virus is MOST AFRAID OF BATTLING!
The Incredible Immune System
The immune system is the amazing part of your body that is like a safety belt. It keeps you safe. It is like a little army that fight invaders (microbes) to keep you strong! The immune system is divided into 2 big groups, innate and acquired immunity. Innate immunity is the group that has all of the tools you are born with to fight microbes. Acquired immunity is immunity that your body learns along the way to fight microbes.
Your immune system army has several lines of defense. This first level of warriors are part of the innate immune system and are on the outside of your body. It starts with skin and hair not allowing microbes to enter. Also, antimicrobial (microbe fighting) cells are in sweat, saliva, and oils that your body secretes (releases). Innate immunity attacks all microbes in the same way and is a very generic process.
If the microbe gets pass the first line of defense, the innate immune system calls up phagocytes and leukocytes. Phagocytes are cells that eat microbes. Leukocytes is the scientific way of saying white blood cells. White blood cells attach to microbes and destroy them. Phagocytes send a message to another friend in the immune system, cytokines, to ask lymphocytes to join the fight. This also starts acquired immunity to take part in this battle.
Lymphocytes are special white blood cells that hang out in the blood waiting to attack microbes. T cell & B cells are lymphocytes that have special locations on them (called receptors) that can connect to microbes like puzzle pieces. This connection causes T cells or B cells to make plasma cells and memory cells. Plasma cells fight the microbe antigen (what a microbe is called once it enters the body) by releasing antibodies. Memory cells remembers the antigen and knows how to fight it if you get sick with the same microbe again.
Once all of the microbes are defeated and taken out of the body like your parent takes out the trash, the immune system is victorious! Hip Hip Hooray!!! 😊😊😊
The Incredible Immune System Wins!
Craft
Epic Battle Scene – Microscopic edition
Supplies
- Pencil (for demonstration)
- Card stock
- Glue
- Scissors
- Sharpie or marker (for drawing)
- Any crafty decoration
- A curious mind + curious kids lol
I wanted my children to have a visual representation of how the immune system works and ALL of the cells that fight a virus. It helps reassure them that everything will be okay seeing lots of immune system cells fighting compared to “one” virus. I created 2 different versions of this craft. One for my 4 year old and one for my 6 year old. While I was explaining all of the aforementioned information, I used the craft pieces as a visual guide through our discussion. During our talk, I emphasized how strong and smart our immune system and all of the work a virus has to go through to survive.
I pre-cut the letters for my 4 year old and we did the craft together. I incorporated some simple phonics practice too. (first picture on the left)
I wanted my 6 year old to have a more accurate depiction of the immune system and the CoronaVirus. I created a virus 🦠, spikes (what the virus connects to in the body, and T cells and B cells with their actual receptor shapes (middle picture). I also made a crown for the virus (not pictured). I used white paper to make a generic white blood cell that was a circle. I also made Super Hero capes that the kids connect to the white blood cell, T cell, and B cell (right picture).
I let my 6 year old have as much fun with this craft. She cut everything out herself and created an epic battle scene. She gave each cell a name and a body. She even gave them weapons like nunchucks. She even drew saliva and sweat in her scene. After she was done all of crafting, I let her explain her microscopic epic battle to me. She was able to explain each line of defense from beginning to end perfectly! After learning exactly what happens in the immune system and creating her own visual representation she was reassured that everything will be just fine!
Resources
Here are some resources you can use to explain this post to your littles. The first resource is a simple microbiology puzzle that you can use when explaining Microbiology. There is a color copy and black and white version also. The next 3 resources explain the immune system. The first one is a blank version of the resource that can be used as a writing exercise. The second copy is filled in and can be used as a reading exercise (I did this with my 6 year old). The third resource is the parent guide to help you be the Microbiology expert for your kids. The last resource is used for the craft section. I made a template that you can print out, cut out the pieces and use them as a template to trace the shapes on to colored (or white) construction paper.
Please let me know how this works out for you! Can’t wait to hear all about in my comments! Enjoy!
Maya
