Epidemic!

Getting Started

Materials you will need:

• Internet access
• Printer connected to computer

Introduction

Ring around the rosie,
A pocket full of posies,
Ashes, ashes
We all fall down.

In your youth, you may have shouted this child's game rhyme. But did you know that some scholars think that this rhyme originated during the horrors of the Black Death? Throughout history, epidemics have brought understandable fear to human communities. Without any knowledge of what caused the epidemics, people resorted to rituals, superstition, and even the slaughter of innocents.

Part 1: Looking for Answers

Use the Internet to time-travel back to 1999, when the American Museum of Natural History hosted an exhibit on epidemics. Take a virtual tour of the epidemics exhibit, moving step by step through the site just as you would through the actual museum. See what you can learn about epidemics.

Part 2: Recording What You've Learned

Print one copy of the Epidemics Worksheet (PDF) and use the information from the exhibit to answer the questions on the sheet.

EXTRA! Find out if your extended family has been impacted by an epidemic. Ask the oldest family members if they recall any stories about the influenza epidemic of 1918.