Shrieking games of cooties tag transmit the contagion rapidly. It can be treated with an origami “cootie catcher,” but it is better to be vaccinated. This requires a friend and a retractable pen.

You might remember these paper fortune tellers (also known as cootie catchers, chatterboxes, salt cellars, or whirlybirds) from your grade school days, made to pass time and bring a laugh or three.