Lesson Plan - The Race for a Vaccine

Engage and Build Vocabulary

Ask students to respond to this prompt: How has the coronavirus pandemic affected your life? What do you think the next year will be like? What gives you hope? Students can write responses or record them with a video platform like Flipgrid. You can also have students watch the video “Coronavirus Diaries" (below), which features teens discussing their experiences, before or after discussing their responses. Then use the Skill Builder Words to Know to preteach domain-specific terms.

Read the Article

Read the article aloud or have students read it independently. As students read, direct them to mark problems the pandemic has created with a P and possible solutions to it with an S.

Answer Close-Reading Questions

ave students write their responses or use the questions to guide a discussion.

• How has the pandemic affected people? (Cause and Effect) The coronavirus has infected millions of people and killed hundreds of thousands. Starting in March 2020, schools and some businesses closed as many people were told to stay home as much as possible. Tens of millions of Americans became unemployed, and more than 100,000 companies went out of business.
• How could a vaccine help end the pandemic? What are some of the challenges in developing one? (Central Ideas) A vaccine could give people immunity so they wouldn’t get sick from the virus or spread it. That could prevent deaths and help people return to school and work with fewer precautions. Developing a vaccine usually takes years because scientists need time to find the right formula and to do several rounds of human testing to make sure it’s safe and effective.
• Reread the last paragraph. How can people help stop the coronavirus from spreading? (Key Details) According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the best ways to help stop the virus from spreading are social distancing (avoiding crowds and staying at least six feet from others), face covering (wearing masks or other coverings), and hand hygiene (washing or sanitizing hands frequently).

Write an Informative Essay

Use the Informative Writing Toolkit to help students respond to the “Write About It!” prompt on page 21.

Assess Comprehension

Assign the 10-question Know the News quiz, available in PDF and interactive forms. You can also use Quiz Wizard to assess comprehension of this article and three others from the issue.