Carter County Museum

Match each word in Column A with its definition in Column B. 

Elementary Lesson 1 Activity - Vocabulary

One of the most important inventors of vaccines was Dr. Maurice Hilleman, who came from Miles City, Montana. 

Elementary Lesson 3 Activity: Who Was Dr. Maurice Hilleman?

Read the story about Jeryl Lynn and the Mumps Vaccine, then answer the following questions. 

Elementary Lesson 4 Activity 2 - The Scientific Method

Maurice "Morris" Hilleman at right and Harold at left on Hillside Ranch near Miles City, Mont. circa 1931. Image courtesy Museum of the Rockies for the Hilleman & Vaccines Curriculum by Carter County Museum. 

Biography: Dr. Maurice R. Hilleman

In 1963, Dr. Hilleman’s daughter, Jeryl Lynn, came down with the mumps. By weakening the mumps virus he had obtained from swabs of her throat, he was able to make a safe and effective mumps vaccine. The same strain of mumps virus is used to make the mumps vaccine today. It is called the Jeryl Lynn strain.

Prior to the vaccine, mumps was the most common cause of meningitis (swelling of the lining of the brain and spinal cord in children). It was the leading cause of acquired deafness among children in the United States.

This ten part series tells the story of developing that vaccine. Illustrations by Jenn Hall for Carter County Museum.

Elementary Lesson 4 Activity 1 - Jeryl Lynn Hilleman & the Mumps Vaccine

This curriculum is organized around the life of Dr. Maurice Hilleman, groundbreaking microbiologist and vaccine developer. Dr. Hilleman was born and raised in rural Montana, so these lessons inspire curiosity in Montana's rural students as well as spark interest in global public health. The project links photographs from Hilleman's life that expand student knowledge of scientific concepts. The lessons were designed by a group of teachers who piloted the curriculum in Ekalaka, Mont. Content background was provided by Carter County Museum in consultation with Montana State University and Museum of the Rockies. 

This resource is broken into two units: one for K-6 and another for 9-12 grades. The Indian Education for All lessons are for grades 6-8 and contain a glossary for younger students. We welcome educators to use the entire curriculum the lesson that applies most to their current studies. The lessons are strongest when taught in sequential order.

Hilleman and Vaccines 9-12 L1 Student Pgs.pdf

Hilleman & Vaccines: Connecting Culture to Scientific Curiosity (K-12 Curriculum)

student materials