Lesson: Zombies Among Us

Tell students that before they explore different parasite-host relationships, they are going to make some predictions. Share the anticipation guide “Predict and Explain” from the online teaching resources. Read each statement aloud and have students discuss and record their pre-reading responses in the left-hand column.

Discuss the word parasite with the class. What do they think it means? What examples can they think of? Record their responses. Have students watch the video “Snail Zombies” and then share their observations. Ask: How did the parasitic worms affect the snails? Prompt students to describe both physical and behavioral changes in the snails. Ask them to refine their description of a parasite based on what they learned from the video. (harms the host, gets nutrients from the host for it or its offspring to grow, can change the host’s behavior)

Split the class into four groups. Assign each group one of the article’s sections (“Exploding Ants,” “Bug Bodyguard,” “Wacky Web-Builder,” or “Worms for Eyes”). Instruct groups to read their section and record the key details about the parasite-host pair, including its life cycle. Then have each group present their parasite-host pair to the class. Discuss how each example meets the definition of parasitism (from Step 2). Then have students complete and discuss the after-reading columns in the “Predict and Explain” skills sheet.

Have students use their knowledge about parasites and their imaginations to create a fictional parasite, using the “Invent a Parasite” skills sheet as a guide. Have students share their short stories with their classmates. Encourage them to take their story further by creating a creepy comic strip based on their parasite or building a 3-D model of the parasite using everyday materials.

Have students complete the article’s “Check for Understanding” and “Comparing Parasites” skills sheets.

⇨ VIDEO EXTRA: Discover how parasitic worms turn snails into zombies.