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Immunology Battle

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Safety Notes

  • Adult supervision and assistance recommended for young children using scissors.
  • Cut chenille wire can be sharp, so use caution and keep away from eyes.

Activity Supplies

  • 1 pipe cleaner (chenille wire) approximately 11 inches long
  • 5 pony beads (same color) for constant region
  • 2 of the same unique shape beads for variable region, such as a star
  • 1 different unique shape bead to model a pathogen, such as a heart
  • Optional: 5 inches of cotton twine or pipe cleaner to place the pathogen bead on to minimize losing pathogen during the game

Activity Steps

Watch the instructional video at the top of the page or follow the steps below to build your antibody model as a visual aid to understand how our immune systems neutralize pathogens.

Playing Immunity Battle? If your group is using 3 diseases, divide players into 3 groups before building. Each group receives one bead shape for their antibody ring and a second shape to carry as their pathogen, so every player is immune to one disease and infected with another.

Build the Antibody Ring

  1. Fold the pipe cleaner in half.
  2. Place finger in the fold then wrap the pipe cleaner around the finger loosely and twist twice making a finger sized “ring.”  
  3. Hold the two loose ends of pipe cleaner together then slide 5 pony beads of the same color onto them to represent the constant region.
  4. Pull the free ends of the pipe cleaner apart and slide on the second type of bead to represent the variable region (these two should be identical to each other) on each and slide to the center of the remaining length.
  5. Bend the pipe cleaner ends over each variable region bead and twist to secure in place. 

You have completed your antibody ring. The two unique beads at the ends represent the antibody’s variable region and the type of pathogen it can “neutralize.”

Play the Game

Setup

This game uses unique bead shapes to represent  (for example, a star, a heart and a circle). Each shape represents a different disease; assign one disease to each shape before playing. The same shape means something different depending on where it appears:

  • On an antibody ring =immunity to that disease
  • Held in hand=infected with that disease (the “pathogen”) Split the unique beads equally among three groups of participants who will be playing the game.

Example: Star=tetanus, Heart=diptheria, circle-pertusis. A star bead in your hand means you can spread tetanus; a star bead on your ring means you’re immune to tetanus.
 
Starting positions: every player wears an antibody ring and holds one pathogen bead.

When “Immunity Battle!” is called, players try to tag others who aren’t immune to their pathogen.

  • Your antibody ring protects you only from the disease of the matching bead shape.
  • If someone tries to tag you and your ring shape matches their pathogen shape, say “Immune!”
  • If your ring does not match their pathogen shape, you are infected and must freeze in place until the round ends.
  • Play two or more rounds as time allows.
  • Final “Vaccine“ Round: A frozen player can un-freeze by shouting “vaccine,” and they join the game with full immunity restored.