Insights
For Insights, Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS) describe the basic hazards of a material, and how the material can be safely handled, used, and stored. Copies of these sheets can be found in the kit folder. See below for more detailed information regarding these sheets for each kit producer.
Foss Kit Safety Information
Delta Education LLC is committed to classroom safety. Most of the chemical components found in kits supplied by Delta Education are common household items that are readily available to consumers. Misuse or mishandling of these materials is a potential safety hazard to teachers and students. Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS) describe the basic hazards of a material, and how the material can be safely handled, used, and stored. The MSDS are included at their site in PDF format for your review and reference. (You'll need Adobe Acrobat Reader version 4 or higher to read the PDFs. )
If you have questions regarding any MSDS, call Delta Education toll free at 800-258-1302 (Monday–Friday 8am–6pm EST). If there's an emergency, you can contact Chemtrec toll free at 800-424-9300 (24 hours per day).
STC Kit Safety Information
Carolina Biological provides access to MSDS information relative to individual chemicals used within their kits as well as other safety suggestions and resources. Carolina is concerned with safety. Their “safety communications are under continual update and improvement. In the event of a serious spill, contamination, ingestion, or other emergency situation, information is available from Carolina Biological by calling Product Information at (800) 227-1150 or (336) 584-0381 and explaining your emergency. This service is available 8AM to 5PM (EST) Monday through Friday. During other hours call the Chemical Transportation Emergency Center (Chemtrec) at (800) 424-9300. These services are for transportation-related emergencies only.”
NSTA Positions
To read each of these position papers in their entirety, proceed to the NSTA link and scroll down to the correct title. This will then link to the complete paper.
Elementary School Science: The National Science Teachers Association supports the notion that investigative science must be a basic in the daily curriculum of every elementary school child at every grade level. In this position statement, NSTA supports the rationale for hands-on science in the elementary grades.
Laboratory Science: The inquisitive spirit of science is assimilated by students who participate in meaningful laboratory activities. The laboratory is a vital environment in which science is experienced. It may be a specially equipped room, a self-contained classroom, a field site, or a larger place, such as the community in which science experiments are conducted. Laboratory experience is so integral to the nature of science that it must be included in every science program for every student. Hands-on science activities can include individual, small, and large group experiences. This position paper goes on to support laboratory experiences at each level of the student's educational experience.
Safety and School Science Instruction: Inherent in many instructional settings including science is the potential for injury and possible litigation. These issues can be avoided or reduced by the proper application of a safety plan. In this position statement the National Science Teachers Association recommends specific guidelines that school districts and teachers adhere to in a comprehensive science program.
Liability of Teachers for Laboratory Safety and Field Trips: Laboratory investigations and field trips are essential to effective science instruction. Teachers should be encouraged to use these instructional techniques as physical on-site activity is important to the development of knowledge, concepts, processes, skills, and scientific attitudes. Inherent in such physical activities is the potential for injury and possible resulting litigation. All such liability must be shared by both school districts and teachers, utilizing clearly defined safety procedures and a prudent insurance plan. The National Science Teachers Association recommends that school districts and teachers adhere to eleven guidelines.
Guidelines for Responsible Use of Animals in the Classroom: The guidelines within this statement are recommended by the National Science Teachers Association for use by science educators and students. They apply, in particular, to the use of nonhuman animals in instructional activities planned and/or supervised by teachers who teach science at the precollege level.
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Total Science Safety System
The Total Science Safety System represents comprehensive training and software programs designed to inform science educators of their legal and professional responsibilities and to provide the tools and confidence to address them. Satisfying these responsibilities has proven to reduce insurance risk and liability, and the potential for lawsuits.
The Total Science Safety System is the key to developing procedures that make classrooms, laboratories, storerooms, and field trips safer and more productive while helping avoid student injury. This CD-ROM based program can be found in every school district in Iowa. Contact your superintendent or high school science department to view this comprehensive safety disk.
The software is a new concept for presenting information and tools to educators concerning science safety. Information is presented, within directories, through a series of pragmatic questions and interactive safety forms and checklists.
Read Me
Provides a review of the safety components of the National Science Education Standards, a review of on-going science safety study, information about the authors, and 15 steps to science safety.
Safety Book
Students should continue to experience science through hands-on activities in order to master subject content and to maintain their natural enthusiasm for learning. The Total Science Safety System Elementary Edition will assist the teacher in accomplishing this goal while improving the safety conditions of the teaching and learning environment by:
*Improving teacher knowledge of room design, which accommodates safe, effective science teaching and learning
*Providing a clear, concise, convenient method for conducting a safety assessment of the teaching environment and necessary safety equipment.
*Providing an efficient mechanism for correcting identified safety concerns.
For information concerning science safety equipment, contact Sargent Welch Scientific Co. For additional information concerning legal issues, you may also want to check the American Association of Law Libraries Online Information Services Site
Forms and Checklists
This Safety Management Tool was developed to enable educators to function within the safety team. Specifically it helps the team to:
1. design and/or upgrade science laboratory facilities
2. identify safety hazards affiliated with science teaching environments
3. provide the basis for a personalized assessment system for each science setting
4. keep accurate records of hazards and corrections made to alleviate them
5. prioritize hazards for correction
6. apprise peers, and administrators, in an effective, nonthreatening manner of hazards, which need correction
7. effectively apply knowledge of chemical hazards, and safety problems in making the science teaching environments safer places in which to teach and learn
To "View Example Form" go to the website and take the opportunity to view samples of the three areas discussed above.
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Rehab the Lab
Rehab the Lab is a comprehensive program that trains teachers to recognize dangerous chemical storage conditions, implement proper hazardous chemical storage, minimize the use of hazardous chemicals, and implement the use of alternative chemicals that minimize risk to staff and students. This training also offers an affordable disposal option for hazardous waste. Each school that signs up to participate receives the following:
1. Chemical management training for as many staff members as want to participate
2. Chemical resource packets that are customized for school area
3. Inventory kits for each targeted area
4. On-site assessment visit for the whole school
5. Significantly discounted disposal rate
6. Assistance with regulatory compliance, follow-up support and
7. Ongoing prevention of future chemical management problems.
Cost to participate in this program is $850 for the first school enrolled from a district and $650 for each additional school from that district. Based on the findings of Metro Waste Authority and EMC Insurance, it is strongly recommended that all middle school and high schools in a district undergo Rehab the Lab training. If you have any questions or require registration assistance, you can contact Becky Wehrman of Metro Waste Authority at (515) 967-5512 or Monte Ball (515-280-2597) or Denny Lamport (515-280-2728) of EMC Insurance. Registration for the program is available through the EMC website at: http://www.emcins.com/emcrm/loss_services/rehab_the_lab.htm
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Exploring Safely: A Guide for Elementary Teachers. Terry Kwan and Juliana Texley
Take the fear factor out of science lessons. This easy-to-digest book relieves many of the safety worries that come with teaching science in elementary school. The emphasis is on positive options for heading off potential hazards, from handling special equipment to conducting field studies.
Chapters cover:
- making safe work habits second nature to students
- equipping your classroom for safety and conveniene, including organizational systems for preparation, setup, and cleanup
- choosing and culturing live plants and animals for classroom study
- working safely with electricity, chemicals, and volunteers
A special added ingredient: model forms that can be adapted for your needs, including permission slips and student contracts. Best of all, a wealth of anecdotes about what works --and what doesn't-- in real-life classrooms makes Exploring Safely enjoyable to read as well as to reference.
Grades K-4, 2002, 125 pp., Stock: PB166X1, ISBN: 0-873552-00-8
Available through NSTA
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Inquiring Safely: A Guide for Middle School Teachers. Terry Kwan and Juliana Texley
Not your average safety guide, Inquiring Safely is a uniquely readable resource from experienced teachers who know both middle school science content and how middle school students behave. The authors go beyond the standard rules and regulations to discuss safety concepts in the context of real classrooms-and to help you make students your partners-in-safety within an inquiry-based science curriculum.
New and veteran teachers alike can use Inquiring Safely to develop better approaches to equip labs, dispose of chemicals and other hazardous materials, maintain documentation, and organize field trips. Some chapters cover specific disciplines, such as physical science, chemistry, Earth science, and biology. Others deal with general topics such as supervising students' online activities, accommodating students with special needs, and working with volunteers. Special features include an unusually detailed index plus model student contracts and permission forms.
Like Exploring Safely: A Guide for Elementary Teachers, this essential book emphasizes a preventive approach to an up-to-date range of potential hazards. Given increased scrutiny of teaching practices and growing concerns about liability, Inquiring Safely belongs on the reference shelf of every middle school science teacher.
Grades: 5 - 8, Product Number: PB166X2, ISBN: 0873552016, Copyright: 2003
Available through NSTA
