Stopping Harmful Germs

Use handwashing, cooking, and refrigeration, and weigh both sides of the claim.

Warm-up, learn, try it together, practice, then a quick check. About 15 minutes.

What children learn in Level 42

We can't see germs, but we can stop many of them. Scrub with soap for at least twenty seconds. Soap and rubbing lift germs off your skin.
Grown-ups cook meat all the way through, because heat kills most harmful bacteria.
Chill leftovers soon. Cold doesn't kill all germs, but it slows their growth, so food stays safe longer.
Now weigh both sides. Yogurt and decomposers show that some microorganisms help. Food poisoning and infections show that some harm. The best claim fits all the evidence.

Georgia Standards of Excellence in Science:

S5L4.a — Construct an argument using scientific evidence to support a claim that some microorganisms are beneficial.
S5L4.b — Construct an argument using scientific evidence to support a claim that some microorganisms are harmful.