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Vaccines Facts & Worksheets

The word "vaccine" was derived from the Latin Variolae vaccinae (cowpox), which Edward Jenner (1798) found could prevent smallpox in people.

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The word “vaccine” was derived from the Latin Variolae vaccinae (cowpox), which Edward Jenner (1798) found could prevent smallpox in people. Today, the term vaccine applies to preparations that have been made from living creatures that help strengthen the body’s resistance to certain diseases.

See the fact file below for more information on the vaccines or alternatively, you can download our 23-page Vaccines worksheet pack to utilise within the classroom or home environment.

Key Facts & Information

HISTORICAL BACKGROUND

  • Attempts to prevent disease go back a long time. In 7th-century India, Buddhist monks drank snake venom to develop immunity against snake bites. In the 1500s, Chinese people would rub dried smallpox scabs into cuts to develop immunity.
  • When the disease itself is used, it is called inoculation. When a similar organism is used, like cowpox instead of smallpox, it is called vaccination.
  • In 1798, in England, Edward Jenner published the results of his experiments. He noticed that milkmaids did not get smallpox so he then used the practice of inoculating the cowpox virus, Variolae vaccinae, to prevent smallpox in humans.
  • At the end of the 19th century, Louis Pasteur began to apply the concept of vaccination to other diseases. He was a supporter of ‘germ theory’ – that disease is caused by germs. Before that, people thought bad smells caused illness!
  • Louis Pasteur believed that the harmful nature of disease-causing organisms could be weakened in the laboratory. Using his knowledge and experiments, he developed vaccines for chicken cholera and anthrax in animals. He then developed a vaccine against rabies in 1885.
  • In 1886, Daniel Elmer Salmon and Theobald Smith exhibited that vaccines could be made not only from live organisms, but also from killed disease-causing organisms.

TYPES OF VACCINE

  • Live-Attenuated. A live and weakened (attenuated) disease-causing germ is introduced to the body. It is just enough for the immune system to identify the threat and attack it. The immune system then creates antibodies and a person develops lifetime immunity. An example of this is vaccinating against measles, chickenpox, mumps, and rubella.
  • Inactivated. Inactivated vaccines use a disease-causing germ when it is dead. They usually do not give protection as strongly as live vaccines and it can take several doses over time to increase one’s resistance to a disease. Examples of this kind of vaccination are Hepatitis A, polio, and rabies.
  • Recombinant Subunit. Here, the body is trained to identify and attack a certain part of a germ, such as its protein, sugar, or outer coating. This is an effective kind of vaccine for people with weakened immune systems as the germ, dead or alive, is not being introduced – only a part of it. It gives good resistance to a disease.
  • Toxoid. Toxoid vaccines use a toxin made by the germ that causes sickness. In this case, it is the poison (antigen) that the germ produces that creates illness, rather than the germ itself. So the immune system attacks and destroys the toxins with antibodies. Toxoid vaccines are used to protect against Diphtheria and Tetanus.

COMPONENTS OF VACCINE

  • Some vaccines are able to create immunity and give protection against a group of similar diseases. To do this, vaccines have different chemicals and ingredients added to act as a second line of treatment.
  • Preservatives. Because vaccines are made in bulk and can sit around for some time before being used, preservatives can be added to increase the shelf life. They also help prevent bacterial contamination when a phial contains more than one dose to be given to more than one person.
  • Added ingredients that boost the effectiveness of a vaccine are called adjuvants.
  • Aluminum salts are the most commonly used adjuvants in vaccines.
  • Unfortunately, they can cause unfavorable side effects such as pain, fever, and a feeling of being unwell (malaise).

HOW VACCINE WORKS

  • Vaccines are very effective at preventing certain diseases. The vast majority who get vaccinated will have invulnerability against the disease.
  • Vaccines help a person fight off a disease more quickly and effectively because the immune system is ready and prepared to attack the disease. The immune system has a memory too – so it can fight off the disease if it comes back again.
  • Some people, like newborn babies, the elderly, or people with weak or failing immune systems, can’t get some vaccines. This makes them vulnerable to diseases.
  • An advantage is when one gets vaccinated, the person likewise secures the unvaccinated individuals around them. This is called community immunity.

IMPORTANCE OF VACCINE

  • Vaccinations are important part of family and public health. They can prevent contagious and deadly diseases from spreading, such as measles, mumps, polio, chicken pox, and diphtheria.
  • Some illnesses like polio can cause life-altering disability and even death, something that vaccines can prevent.
  • All diseases aside from smallpox are still active in some part of the world. If people stop being vaccinated, the diseases would start coming back.

THINGS TO CONSIDER

  • Some people believe that vaccines can cause autism. There has been no peer-reviewed scientific study to prove a link between vaccinations and developing autism.
  • Some people believe that babies’ immune systems are not strong enough to handle vaccines. In truth, babies’ immune systems are capable of handling much more than what vaccines present. It is important for babies to receive their vaccinations at the right age.
  • The additives in vaccines are not harmful at the doses given. There are substances in some vaccines that could be dangerous in higher doses, but the amount used in vaccinations is completely safe.

Vaccines Worksheets

This is a fantastic bundle which includes everything you need to know about the vaccines across 23 in-depth pages. These are ready-to-use Vaccines worksheets that are perfect for teaching students about the word “vaccine” which was derived from the Latin Variolae vaccinae (cowpox), which Edward Jenner (1798) found could prevent smallpox in people. Today, the term vaccine applies to preparations that have been made from living creatures that help strengthen the body’s resistance to certain diseases.

Complete List Of Included Worksheets

  • Vaccines Facts
  • It’s Interesting!
  • Find and Search
  • Get Vaccinated
  • Table Completion
  • Cure You
  • Known Diseases
  • Vaccine Administration
  • Check the List
  • Myth or Fact
  • Better Safe Than Sorry

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Link will appear as Vaccines Facts & Worksheets: https://kidskonnect.com - KidsKonnect, March 5, 2020

Use With Any Curriculum

These worksheets have been specifically designed for use with any international curriculum. You can use these worksheets as-is, or edit them using Google Slides to make them more specific to your own student ability levels and curriculum standards.

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