An Internet WebQuest for 7th Grade Science
Designed by Becky Field
Becky.field@moffatsd.org
Introduction
Have you ever gotten sick and went to the doctor only to be
told you would just have to “tough it out” because the
symptoms were most likely caused by a virus? How about
the time you had a high fever and were sure a virus caused
it but you went to the doctor anyway and found out your
symptoms were caused by bacteria? What’s the difference
between a viral illness and a bacterial illness? Can a virus
be killed? Are bacteria alive? How does the doctor decide
to treat patients with viral or bacterial caused illnesses? In
this WebQuest you will have the opportunity to research
each of these questions as consultants for the CDC
(Centers for Disease Control and Prevention).
 You have just received a phone call from the CDC
asking for your help. They need you to fly to a village
in Africa to investigate an outbreak of a strange
disease. Your mission will be to determine if a bacteria
or a virus caused the disease. You will need to prepare
a PowerPoint presentation to inform the CDC what
you have learned about the differences between
bacteria and viruses. You will then make a
recommendation on whether the patients and rest of
the village should be quarantined, vaccinated or
treated with antibiotics. Good Luck!
The Disease
 The specifics of this particular mysterious disease
are: the patients start symptoms one to three days from
exposure, the patients develop a nonproductive cough,
headaches, aches and pains, extreme exhaustion, and
an extremely high fever and chills that lasts for 3-4 days.
There have been some fatalities especially in the elderly
and extremely young. Antibiotics have not been helpful
in the treatment of the disease. Incubation period of the
disease is one to three days. Most patients have similar
symptoms but recovery time varies from patient to patient
depending on overall health and age.
The Task
 You must learn as much as you can about the
differences between bacteria and viruses so that you
can prepare a PowerPoint presentation that will
persuade the CDC to follow your suggestions.
Include the following in your presentation: a
comparison of bacteria and viruses in the areas of:
living vs. nonliving, size, how they reproduce, basic
symptoms of diseases caused by bacteria or viruses,
a list of some diseases caused by bacteria and/or
viruses, treatments/cures or preventions and a
recommendation of how to treat the patients with the
disease.
Phase 1
Background
 In this WebQuest you will be working to answer
every part of the Quest. You will explore WebPages
from people all over the world who care about
Outbreak! Because these are real WebPages we're
tapping into, not things made just for schools; the
reading level might challenge you. Feel free to use the
online dictionary or one in your computer lab.
 You'll begin by getting some background information
before deciding what course of action to take.
1. Explore the websites below to find the information you need to
understand bacteria and viruses.
2. Read through the files that are linked.. Use the WebQuest
worksheet to keep track of the information necessary to
complete the Task. While you are looking at the files on the
computer, copy sections you feel are important by dragging the
mouse across the passage and copying / pasting it into a Word/
Apple Works document.
3. Note: Remember to write down or copy/paste the URL of the
file you take the passage from so you can quickly go back to it if
you need to prove your point. You may choose to copy diagrams,
pictures or animations that you may want to use in your
presentation.
Basic differences between bacteria and viruses
(You will need to highlight each website and copy and paste it into the internet.)
 http://www.beyondbooks.com/lif72/2.asp
 http://www.mansfieldct.org/schools/mms/staff/hand/Immuneb
acteriavsviruses.htm
 http://www.ehow.com/about_5097832_virus-vs-bacteria-
symptoms.html
 http://www.diffen.com/difference/Bacteria_vs_Virus
Cell Size and Reproduction
http://www.microbeworld.org/index.php?option=c
om_content&view=article&id=87&Itemid=59
www.cellsalive.com/howbig.htm
Diseases and Treatments
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_infectious_diseases
http://www.netdoctor.co.uk/health_advice/facts/virusbact
eria.htm
http://www.uofmchildrenshospital.org/healthlibrary/conte
nt/pa_viralinf_pep.htm
http://www.uofmchildrenshospital.org/healthlibrary/cont
ent/pa_antiprev_hhg.htm
Phase 2
Two Possible Choices
Now that you have an understanding of bacteria and
viruses, you may want to do a little more research on a
two specific diseases using the Internet information
linked below to help you with your CDC
recommendation.
http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvrd/spb/mnpages/disp
ages/ebola.htm
http://www.flufacts.com/
Phase 3
What disease is this?
 You have learned the differences between bacteria
and viruses. You must answer each part of the
WebQuest. You will bring a certain viewpoint to the
recommendation but you must be certain about what
caused the disease and what kind of treatment or
prevention should be used. Use information,
pictures, movies, facts, opinions, etc. from the
WebPages you explored to inform the CDC and
discuss what you have researched with others in
your class. Your presentation should be a reflection
of your insights.
Phase 4
You have learned a lot by researching. Now it's time to
create your PowerPoint presentation that will show
what you have learned and will help the CDC decide
what treatment should be given. Create a
presentation that contains opinions, information, and
perspectives that you've gained. Here's the process:
Begin by learning how to use PowerPoint. Use the
PowerPoint Tutorial if you are not already familiar with
the program.
To make sure you finish on time, put info in first, then
play with fonts, backgrounds, animations, etc.
Your Presentation
Begin your presentation with a statement of who you are and why you are writing your
message to the CDC.
Give background information on the PowerPoint slides that show your understanding of the
differences between bacteria and viruses in the areas of: living vs. nonliving, size, how
they reproduce, basic symptoms of diseases caused by bacteria or viruses, a list of some
diseases caused by bacteria and/or viruses, and treatments/cures or preventions of
bacterial or viral caused illnesses. Include diagrams, animations or pictures in your
presentation.
Follow up your presentation with a recommendation to the CDC on whether a bacteria or
virus caused the disease, how you think the patients should be treated, and what should
be done with the rest of the village to prevent more outbreaks of the disease. Make sure to
be specific in both the information (where you got it on the Web) and the reasoning (why
the information proves your point).
Proofread the presentation. You will decide what format to use, how many animations or
diagrams to have in your presentation and you will present the information.
Conclusion
Do you believe a bacteria or a virus caused the
mystery disease? Hopefully you learned enough
about the differences between them to make a good
recommendation to the CDC. Nice work. You
should be proud of yourself. You may have saved
lives!