Maggie urges Frankie to share his custom smoothies with the Reps customers, and, at first, Frankie is delighted. He enlists some neighborhood kids to help him out, helping Maggie keep her dream of creating a true heart for the community at Reps alive. It all seemed perfect – until Frankie discovers that some strawberries (a smoothie special) have been shown to carry a bacterium that causes people to get sick from eating them. How can he protect his customers? Can he find better ways to handle his product? Or should he just stop making smoothies altogether?
We strongly suggest that you allow students to complete the entire story the first time they engage in this interactive. However, we have divided the story into several sections so you or your students can revisit parts of the story to reinforce or clarify story content and to facilitate class discussions. You can reach each of these "pause points" by using special URL links.
| Section 1 |
Frankie introduces his story. Working as a personal trainer at Reps, he tells the audience how he overcame sloppy eating habits to take better care of himself. Maggie has asked him to help out at Reps by supplying folks with a specialty of his healthful smoothies. The customers love them and the neighborhood kids he hires to help make them do as well. One Sunday, while reading the paper, he discovers that a batch of strawberries was found to be carrying the harmful bacteria Listeria. (Scenes 1-9)
- The newspaper article is available for users to read.
http://enviromysteries.thinkport.org/insidestories/home.html?load=frankie1 |
| Section 2 |
Frankie is alarmed because he uses strawberries in his smoothie. But, as he tells his roommate Thomas, the strawberries he uses are organic. But his confidence in his products erodes when his girlfriend Sofia tells him that she read in a magazine that any kind of food – even organic food – can carry Listeria bacteria. On his way home from dinner, Frankie picks up the magazine. (Scenes 10-15)
- The magazine article is available for users to read.
http://enviromysteries.thinkport.org/insidestories/home.html?load=frankie2 |
| Section 3 |
Depressed because he can't be sure that the food he uses to make the smoothies at Reps is safe, Frankie calls his strawberry supplier. The supplier could neither confirm nor deny that he has sent Frankie contaminated strawberries. Frankie decides to get rid of all the strawberries he has and disinfect his work area. (Scenes 16-20)
http://enviromysteries.thinkport.org/insidestories/home.html?load=frankie3 |
| Section 4 |
Frankie learns that Maggie is concerned about the Listeria story in the news. She has asked a friend of hers in public health to get in touch with him. Even though Frankie assures her that he is on top of the situation, he still has his doubts. He even rebuffs his girlfriend when she calls asking if he has read the Listeria story. Frankie receives the email from Maggie's friend. (Scenes 21-27)
- The email and related web site are available for users to read.
http://enviromysteries.thinkport.org/insidestories/home.html?load=frankie4 |
| Section 5 |
Frankie decides to make sure his smoothie crew knows how to handle food safely. He downloads a list of rules that help food handlers complete their jobs safely. (Scenes 28-30)
- The list of safe food handling rules is available for users to read.
http://enviromysteries.thinkport.org/insidestories/home.html?load=frankie5 |
| Section 6 |
When Frankie apologizes to Sofia for his rude behavior, he learns she and her friends have been sick, To Frankie, her symptoms sounded just like those that could be caused by Listeria. He visits her to help cheer her up. But Frankie still feels very guilty. As he tells Thomas, he can't be sure he didn't do something that caused Sofia to get sick. Even though Thomas reassures him, Frankie is still very depressed and considers closing the smoothie bar at Reps. (Scenes 31-38)
http://enviromysteries.thinkport.org/insidestories/home.html?load=frankie6 |
| Section 7: Conclusion |
The point in the story where students offer their advice about Frankie's problem. (Screen 39)
http://enviromysteries.thinkport.org/insidestories/home.html?load=frankie7 |
| Abdominal |
Relating to the abdomen or the part of the body between the thorax and the pelvis |
| Afford |
To be able to pay for |
| Announcements |
Public messages |
| Apologized |
Said one was sorry; expressed regret for making a mistake |
| Bacteria |
Germs; plural word for very small, living things (microorganisms) that often cause sickness |
| Bacterium |
A germ; the singular word for a very small, living thing (microorganism) that often cause sickness |
| Campylobacter jejuni |
A rod-shaped bacterium that can be carried in food, causing illness |
| Clients |
Customers or patrons |
| Colitis |
A disease where the colon is irritated or inflamed |
| Concerned |
Worried about |
| Contaminated |
Unfit for use because of contact with a substance that can harm people |
| Dangerous |
Unsafe or harmful |
| Decisions |
Choices made after thinking about them |
| Definite |
Specific, exact, clear-cut |
| Dehydration |
The state when your body has lost some of its water and other fluids |
| Depressed |
Sad; low in spirits |
| Dialysis |
A medical process that uses equipment to clean wastes from the body after the kidneys have stopped working |
| Disinfected |
Destroyed harmful organisms such as bacteria |
| Electrolytes |
Elements or chemicals, such as sodium and calcium, that your body needs to be able to work properly |
| Emphasized |
Pointed out or stressed |
| Environment |
The place or area where something lives |
| Escherichia coli (E.coli) |
A bacteria group found in humans and animals; although some kinds are harmless, others can cause diseases |
| Expensive |
High-priced; costly |
| Expiration date |
The date on certain foods that tells when they must be used by |
| Food-borne illness |
Any disease caused by eating food or drinking beverages that have been contaminated by bacteria or other harmful substances; also called food poisoning |
| Gastrointestinal |
Having to do with the body's digestive system which includes the mouth, esophagus, stomach, and intestines |
| Guaranteed |
Fail-safe; sure |
| Guilty |
Feeling as if you were responsible for doing something wrong |
| Harvesting |
Gathering in a crop from the fields |
| Hospitalized |
Sent to the hospital to be treated for an illness or injury |
| Immune system |
The body’s system that defends you against disease and invasion from other foreign substances, such as bacteria. |
| Irrigation |
A system that brings water to dry land |
| Isolated |
Cut off from others |
| Listeria |
A bacterium that can cause food borne illnesses |
| Listeria monocytogenes |
The scientific name for Listeria, a bacterium that can cause food poisoning |
| Microscopic |
So small that it can only be seen with a microscope |
| Misdiagnosed |
Made an incorrect diagnosis; failed to correctly identify the cause of a patient's condition |
| Moist |
Slightly damp; wet |
| Neurologic |
Related to the body's nervous system |
| Nutrition |
All the processes related to taking food in and using it |
| Organic food |
Food that has been raised or grown without any synthetic fertilizers, pesticides, antibiotics, growth hormones, or food additives |
| Pathogens |
Bacteria or viruses that cause disease |
| Poultry |
Food from domesticated birds, such as chicken, turkey, goose, or duck |
| Processing |
Handling a food product from harvest to packaging |
| Productivity |
A measure of the output by a worker per the hours worked |
| Public health |
Organized efforts to protect, promote, and restore people's health |
| Recalled |
Took an item out of the market place to prevent its sale |
| Reduce |
Lessen; cut; make smaller |
| Refrigerate |
To keep food cool or cold by placing it in a refrigerator or freezer |
| Resources |
People, information, or materials used to accomplish a task |
| Runoff |
Water that flows over land, sometimes picking up substances that can pollute the air, water, or crops grown on that land |
| Salmonella |
A rod-shaped bacterium that can cause food borne illnesses |
| Seafood |
Fish and shellfish that people eat |
| Severe |
Extremely bad or unpleasant |
| Specialty |
A specific line of work within a career |
| Supplier |
A merchant that provides certain products to other businesses |
| Symptoms |
Conditions that indicate something is wrong in your body |
| Toxins |
Poisons |
| Transfusions |
Taking blood or blood-like products from one person and giving them to another |
| Unpasteurized |
Not pasteurized, or heated until the bacteria in a food or beverage has been killed |
| Upshot |
Result or consequence |
| Utensil |
Items like silverware, spatulas, and pots and pans that are used to prepare and eat food |
| Weird |
Strange; unusual |
The reference materials are all in PDF format. You will need to have Adobe Acrobat installed on your computer to open the files. You can download the free plugin on Adobe's web site.
