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Germs Alive!

Cub Scouts · Adventure, Elective

Printable worksheet (PDF)

This adventure shows how germs spread and how to stop them. You'll do messy demonstrations, grow some mold, and learn the best way to wash your hands. It's science you can see and use every day.

Why it's worth it

Germs are too small to see, but they're everywhere, and some can make you sick. Germs Alive! lets you see how they spread with glitter, spray bottles, and a little gross science. You'll grow your own mold and learn the handwashing trick doctors use. Afterward, you'll know how to help keep yourself and your family healthier.

Start this week

  1. Wash your hands while singing Happy Birthday twice. Is that longer than you usually wash?
  2. With your adult, seal a slice of bread in a zip-top bag, write today's date on it, and set it in a warm spot.
  3. Practice sneezing and coughing into your elbow.
  4. Ask your adult for an old spray bottle to use for the sneeze demonstration.

Plan ahead: Start the mold culture for requirement 5 about a week before the den or pack meeting where you'll show it. Mold needs several days to grow.

Stay safe

  • Keep mold bags sealed. Don't open or sniff them, and have an adult throw them away closed when you're done.

Requirements · 5

Every official requirement and part, numbered to match Scouting America, in plain language. Sign off against the official wording (opens in a new tab).

  1. Requirement 1

    Sing "Happy Birthday" twice while you wash your hands with soap and water

    Tip: Scrub fronts, backs, and between your fingers while you sing Happy Birthday twice.

    For example: Wet your hands, add soap, and scrub the backs, between your fingers, and under your nails while you sing Happy Birthday twice. Then rinse and dry with a clean towel.

  2. Requirement 2

    Play Germ Magnet with your den or family, then wash your hands

    Tip: After Germ Magnet, see how far the germs spread, then wash them off.

    For example: In Germ Magnet, one person's hands get glitter as pretend germs. After a few handshakes and passing a ball around, everyone checks how far the germs traveled.

  3. Requirement 3

    Do the sneeze demonstration

    Tip: Use a spray bottle to show how far a sneeze travels, then practice sneezing into your elbow.

    For example: Fill a spray bottle with water, hold it at nose height, and spray once over a long sheet of paper. Measure how far the drops go. Then try again with an elbow in front.

  4. Requirement 4

    Do the mucus demonstration

    Tip: Try the mucus demo to see how your nose traps germs.

    For example: Spread something sticky, like corn syrup, on a plate and sprinkle pepper over it. The sticky part traps the bits, just like mucus traps germs and dust in your nose.

  5. Requirement 5

    Grow a mold culture and show what grew at a den or pack meeting

    Tip: Put bread in a sealed bag in a warm spot and check it each day. Keep the bag closed.

    For example: Touch one slice of bread with unwashed hands and another with clean hands. Seal each in a labeled bag and check them every day. Show the bags, still sealed, at your meeting.

Talk about it together

  • What surprised you about how far the germs spread?
  • Where do you think germs hide most in your home or school?
  • When are the most important times to wash your hands?
  • How can you help your family stay healthy when someone has a cold?

Good questions to ask your school nurse or doctor

  • Why does soap work better than just water?
  • Are all germs bad for us?
  • Why does my body get a fever when I'm sick?

Helpful reads

For leaders & parents

  • Use glitter or lotion with powder to show germs moving from hand to hand.
  • Keep mold samples sealed and toss them unopened after showing them.

People & places that can help

Pairs well with

Counts toward

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Tips, examples, and questions are ideas from experienced leaders, not extra requirements. Your unit leader or counselor decides when a requirement is complete.