Target Grade Level / Age Range

High School students: 15-18 year olds

Time

45 minutes

Virtual Learning

An online course is available and created for middle-high school students (ages 13-18), available at www.BlueNotFlu.org. This lesson plan is created using the information taught in the online courses. The website also contains additional supplemental resources that are available for educators. Hands-on activity guides with demo videos are available, as well as related resources.

Purpose

  • Describe avian influenza and how it is transmitted among animals and people.
  • Explain the impact that an HPAI outbreak has on animal agriculture.
  • Identify potential public health impacts of a highly pathogenic avian influenza outbreak.
  • Identify those persons most at risk for being infected with avian influenza A viruses and those with the highest risk of complications.
  • Explain how and why animal exhibitions might be impacted by HPAI.

Materials

Suggested Companion Resources

Vocabulary (with definitions)

  • Case definition: A set of standard criteria for deciding whether an individual should be classified as having the disease
  • Comb: The fleshy growth on top of the head of chickens and turkeys
  • Depopulation: Large numbers of animals are destroyed quickly and efficiently
  • Mortality rate: Death rate
  • Wattle: The fold of skin hanging from the neck or throat of chickens and turkeys

Background – Agricultural Connections

This lesson goes through a case study of an avian influenza outbreak in the US. While all information required to complete the case is provided within this lesson (lesson 4), having reviewed lessons 1, 2, and 3 of the “Bring Home the Blue, Not the Flu!” curriculum (either as classroom instruction or on their own using the online module), will provide further background, facilitate interactivity in the case study, and allow a more engaging and robust learning experience. The content in the lesson emphasizes working and showing with animals, but any students with a general interest in agriculture, science, and/or health will find the lessons relatable and understandable. Whether on the farm, at a fair, or at home, the information presented within these courses—and the many supplemental resources we have developed to assist with implementation—can benefit youth with their current and future livestock projects, and contribute to their science and health education.

Interest Approach or Motivator

To interest students in the topic, you can share this information regarding an outbreak of HPAI: “The HPAI outbreak that began during the spring of 2015 was the largest U.S. animal disease outbreak to date. The outbreak occurred in the upper Midwest among laying hens, turkeys, and pullets."

You can then ask students to guess how many chickens and turkeys were infected and depopulated, as well as how much money was spent on response efforts. Correct answer: about 50 million chickens and turkeys infected or exposed and depopulated. Around $900 million was spent on response efforts.

Procedures

  1. Present the Lesson 4 PowerPoint or online module to the class. 
    1. Describe avian influenza and how it is transmitted among animals and people. (slide 5 of the PowerPoint)
    2. Identify those persons most at risk for being infected with avian influenza A viruses and those with the highest risk of complications. (slides 7-8)
    3. Explain the impact that an HPAI outbreak has on animal agriculture. (slides 20-22 on the PowerPoint)
    4. Explain how and why animal exhibitions might be impacted by HPAI. (slide 23 of the PowerPoint)
    5. Identify potential public health impacts of a highly pathogenic avian influenza outbreak. (slide 24 of the PowerPoint)
  2. Facilitate discussion on HPAI
    1. Have students discuss the different ways the disease could have spread from farm to farm, across state, lines, and even between countries
    2. Students should think about how HPAI affected county fairs and exhibitions
    3. Facilitate discussion on HPAI’s effect on markets and sales
  3. Distribute the Learning Objective worksheet
    1. This can be used as an exit card or end quiz for the day.
    2. The learning objective worksheet can also be used as review of the objectives for the day.

Essential Files (maps, charts, pictures, or documents)

Did you know?

  • Wild waterfowl that are infected with HPAI usually do not show signs of disease.
  • Not all avian influenzas are zoonotic. However, if the disease is zoonotic, it is transferred to humans that are in close contact with birds or tissues.

Extension Activities

Students can conduct more research on outbreaks of HPAI and present it to the class or to a club.

Sources/Credits

Author(s)

  • Brittney Nelson, BS
  • Abbey Canon, DVM, MPH, DACVPM
  • Molly Lee, DVM, MPH, DACVPM
  • Kristen Obbink, DVM, MPH, DACVPM

Organization Affiliation

Center for Food Security and Public Health at Iowa State University

National Agricultural Literacy Outcomes

  • T1.9-12 c.: Discuss the scientific basis for regulating the movement of plants and animals worldwide to control for the spread of potentially harmful organisms (e.g., invasive species and disease causing organisms such as foot and mouth disease and avian and swine flu) as well as the methods of control in place (state, national, and international policies, economic incentives)
  • T5.9-12 a.: Communicate how the global agricultural economy and population influences the sustainability of communities and societies
  • T5.9-12 d.: Describe essential agricultural careers related to production, consumption, and regulation
  • T5.9-12 i.: Explain the role of government in the production, distribution, and consumption of food
  • T3.9-12 h.: Provide examples of foodborne contaminants, points of contamination, and the policies/agencies responsible for protecting the consumer
  • T2.9-12 a.: Compare and contrast the differences between nature’s plant and animal lifecycles with agricultural systems (e.g., producers manage the lifecycle of plants and animals to produce a product for consumption)
  • T2.9-12 c.: Discuss reasons for government’s involvement in agricultural production, processing, and distribution
  • T2.9-12 e.: Identify inspection processes associated with food safety regulations

Iowa Core Standards

  • Health Literacy
    • 21.9-12.HL.1. Demonstrate functional health literacy skills to obtain, interpret, understand and use basic health concepts to enhance personal, family, and community health.
    • 21.9-12.HL.2. Synthesize interactive literacy and social skills to establish and monitor personal, family and community goals related to all aspects of health.
    • 21.9-12.HL.3. Apply critical literacy/thinking skills related to personal, family and community wellness.
    • 21.0.12.HL.5. Demonstrate behaviors that foster healthy, active lifestyles for individuals and the benefit of society.
  • Science
    • HS-ETS1-1. Analyze a major global challenge to specify qualitative and quantitative criteria and constraints for solutions that account for societal needs and wants.
    • HS-ETS1-3. Evaluate a solution to a complex real-world problem based on prioritized criteria and trade-offs that account for a range of constraints, including cost, safety, reliability, and aesthetics, as well as possible social, cultural, and environmental impacts.
    • HS-ETS1-4. Use a computer simulation to model the impact of proposed solutions to a complex real-world problem with numerous criteria and constraints on interactions within and between systems relevant to the problem.