Infectious Respiratory Disease

CONTENTS OF CURRICULUM UNIT 25.05.04

  1. Unit Guide
  1. Introduction
  2. Demographics and Rationale
  3. Content  
  4. Teaching Strategies
  5. Teaching Activities
  6. Bibliography
  7. Appendix on Implementing District Standards
  8. Science Standards:
  9. Social Studies standards
  10. Notes

A Brief History of Vaccines and Respiratory Diseases

Damon Peterson

Published September 2025

Tools for this Unit:

Guide Entry to 25.05.04

This is a science unit designed to be taught for grades 3-5. This unit is a brief exploration of the history of vaccinations.  The beginning of this unit examines the biology and evolutionary history of viruses.  Then, the unit looks to the origins of the first medical interventions of infectious diseases.  The curriculum explores traditions in the ancient East, i.e., China and India.  These civilizations were among some of the first to create forms of inoculation.  Then the curriculum looks to how these ideas were studied, adopted, and imported, - and then further developed by Europeans during the age of the renaissance and colonial exploration.  Finally, the curriculum explores medical interventions and the rapid development of the mRNA vaccine, in particular, that were created in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The goal of the curriculum is to provide students with foundational knowledge necessary for them to understand, navigate, and persevere through challenges presented by infectious respiratory diseases.

Keywords: Infectious Respiratory Diseases, Viruses, Smallpox, COVID-19, inoculation, vaccination, vaccinology, Lady Wortley Montagu, Edward Jenner, mRNA vaccines, Dr. Katalin Kariko, Dr. Drew Weissman

(Developed for English Language Arts, Social Studies, and Science, grade 4; recommended for English Language Arts and Social Studies, grades 3-5)

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