Coronavirus escape room game for primary school pupils

Coronavirus teaching resource based on an escape room game for primary schools participating in the Southampton Saliva Testing Programme in September 2020, containing tools and kits for six activities by the LifeLab team

Activity 1 contains 1 GIANTmicrobes® plush common cold virus, 1 GIANTmicrobes® plush COVID-19, 1 GIANTmicrobes® plush streptococcus bacteria, 1 GIANTmicrobes® plush measles virus, 1 GIANTmicrobes® plush E.Coli bacteria, 1 GIANTmicrobes® plush tuberculosis bacteria, 2 microbe classification key cards, 1 toolbox; Activity 2: 6 UV powder COVID sorting cards, 1 white zipped pouch; 1 combination padlock; Activity 3: 1 black zipped pouch, 1 combination padlock, 6 UV pens; Activity 4: 1 plastic measuring cylinder, 1 yellow container marked ‘Soap’ with a key, Activity 5: carboard jigsaw, 1 white zipped pouch with padlock; Activity 6: 6 Pasteur pipettes, 2 tubes of glitter, 1 carboard tube, 1 green tray; with 1 surgical mask, 3 lessons plans for Reception age pupils, Key Stage 1 pupils and Key Stage 2 pupils; 1 copy of ‘Dave the Dog is worried about coronavirus: a nurse Dotty book’ written and illustrated by Molly Watts, 2020 ; 1 copy of ‘Coronavirus and Covid: A book for children about the pandemic’ illustrated by Axel Scheffler, published by Nosy Crow, 2020 all contained in a Really Useful 42 litre box

In August 2020, the LifeLab team developed an escape room type experience that teachers could play with their primary school children to encourage participation with the pilot saliva COVID-19 testing programme that was being trialled at the time in Southampton and Hampshire. Through six activities, young people engage with a different aspect of COVID-19 including identifying the shape of the virus, social distancing, hand washing and face coverings. At the end of the experience, they watched a video about the journey their saliva would go on to be tested for COVID to understand more about the process. The activities were delivered in school by teachers, some with support from the University of Southampton LifeLab team, the day before saliva testing was to start in September and ended with the pupils being issued with their testing packs to take home.

LifeLab is a teaching laboratory based at Southampton General Hospital, dedicated to improving adolescent health by giving school students opportunities to learn first-hand the science behind health messages. The LifeLab motto is ‘Change the beginning and you change the whole story.’ Throughout the pandemic created both in person and virtual resources to support young people through an incredibly difficult and unpredictable time.