At the beginning of each school year and throughout the year, it’s important that we focus on science safety lab rules. Whether you are new to teaching middle school science, a veteran who has done this for years, or a science teacher who is nervous about labs in the classroom, this is for you! Let’s talk about how we teach lab safety from the start so we can make sure our students follow the science safety lab rules all year long.

In this post

Science lab safety is so important. We’ll go over the safety contract, ways to teach lab safety, how to make sure students follow rules, and reviewing the lab safety rules.

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Science Lab Safety Contract

It is so important that you have students (and their parent/guardian) review and sign a lab safety contract. At the beginning of the school year, pass out a copy of the science lab safety contract. Your district or school might have a lab safety contract for you to use. If not, you can use the one in the free Lab Safety Starter Pack. Science companies like Flinn Scientific also has a free lab safety contract.

This will be helpful for you when you have to hold a student accountable for the lab safety rules. If a student doesn’t follow a rule, you can refer back to this agreement that they signed saying they will follow the safety rules

picture of lab safety contract "It is so important that students and their parent/guardian review and sign a lab safety contract"

Teaching Science Safety Lab Rules

Teaching about science lab safety can be done in a variety of ways. You can simply project the contract over the document camera and review the rules with your students. You might prefer a powerpoint you can use to teach the students about lab safety. I created this Science Lab Safety resource that includes a safety contract, a PowerPoint, and more to teach the students about lab safety.

Be sure when you are teaching students about lab safety, you are giving them opportunities to practice. That way they know what it looks like to follow a safety rule. Just like your classroom procedures, praise and reinforce your students when they are following the safety rules. If they are breaking a rule, stop them and reteach the rule. Give them an opportunity to demonstrate they can follow the rules.

Teaching and reteaching happens all year long. Be sure you teach it at the beginning of the year so you can simply review it throughout the year or after breaks.

Science Lab Safety Project Ideas

After teaching the lab safety rules, there are different projects you can have them do. One of the most common projects is a science lab safety poster. This is a great one because you can display them in your classroom all year long. You can also have them make a comic, create a skit, or write a story or song. In the Lab Safety resource, I have a set of projects you can choose from.

Science Lab Safety Reflection Sheet

I love the lab safety reflection sheet. This is also in the Lab Safety Starter Pack and the Lab Safety bundle. I make about a class set of copies, just to have it on hand if I need it. If a student does not follow a safety rule, I give them a warning. If they continue, I have them sit out and complete the reflection sheet.

This has been a very useful tool to get a student back on track. They complete it at their desk and we discuss it together. I usually have them remain at their desk and observe the rest of the lab. I email the paper home and let their parents/guardians know about it.

This is a great way to hold students accountable for their behavior during labs. I usually have one or two students that have to complete this during the year. And for any student, they learn from it and don’t break rules the rest of the year.

picture of lab reflection sheet "the lab reflection sheet is a great way to hold students accountable for behavior during labs"

Reviewing Science Lab Safety Rules

There are times when we must review lab safety rules. Before each lab or hands-on activity that involves supplies, review the lab safety rules. I put a safety rules slide in my PowerPoint for each lab.

You may have a class that needs to completely review the safety rules because they are not following them. You could reteach the rules to this class. You can also do demos, rather than labs in groups, for this class. Call on a few students to help with the demo. On your next lab, give them an opportunity to complete it on their own. This will let you know if they are ready or if you still need to do demos.

And you’ll want to review lab safety rules after each break. This shouldn’t take long. You can play a game, have a group discussion, or make skits or posters.

Reviewing lab safety is much like reviewing classroom procedures. Read more in this blog post about reviewing science classroom procedures.

Wrap Up

Lab safety is extremely important to teach, review, and enforce in a science classroom. You’ll teach it at the beginning of the year and use a science lab safety contract. Review the lab safety rules before each lab, after a break, and anytime that the kids seem to forget the rules. Reinforce what they are doing correctly. Correct the ones they are doing wrong. A reflection sheet comes in handy for individual students who are not following the rules.