JoinSafety Resources
Schools and districts should develop safety programs that include the effective management of chemicals, safety training for teachers and others, and creating school environments that are as safe as possible.
Safety Alert
Do Not Use Methanol-Based Flame Tests on Open Laboratory Desks
Featured Resources
NSTA Resources
NSTA Safety Blog
Dr. Kenneth Roy, NSTA's Chief Science Safety Compliance Consultant, regularly shares safety tips and responds to your questions in the NSTA Safety Blog.
NSTA Position Statement: Safety and School Science Instruction
Official NSTA position statement addressing safety programs, training, and school environments.
NSTA Position Statement: Liability of Science Educators for Laboratory Safety
Official NSTA position statement focused on the shared responsibility of maintaining a safe learning environment.
NSTA Minimum Safety Practices and Regulations for Demonstrations, Experiments, and Workshops
NSTA establishes safety practices and regulations for all hands-on demonstrations, experiments, and workshops given at NSTA-sponsored events in rooms, other on-site locations, and on the floor of the NSTA exhibit hall.
Safety Issue Papers
Members of NSTA's Safety Advisory Board offer the following documents addressing important safety issues in school science labs and classrooms:
- Science/STEM Instructional Space Requirements
- Flexible Seating in Conventional Elementary-Level Science Classrooms: What are the Benefits and Concerns?
- NSTA At-Home Science and STEM Activities Approval Document
- Safety and the Next Generation Science Standards
- Safer Remote Instructional Guide for Elementary School Science
- Safer Remote Instructional Guide for Science Grade Levels 6–12
- COVID-19 Pandemic Safer Science/STEM Online and Face-to-Face Learning Environments Instruction Disclaimer Statement
- Safety Acknowledgment Forms (PDF)
- Safety in Elementary Science
- Personal Protective Equipment
- Eye Protection and Safer Practices FAQ
- Safer Handling of Alcohol in the Laboratory
- Tips for the Safer Handling of Microorganisms in the School Science Laboratory (PDF)
- Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labeling of Chemicals (PDF)
- Chemical Hygiene Plan: Quick-Reference Guide (PDF)
- Managing Your Chemical Inventory (PDF)
- Science Activity Safety Checklist (PDF)
- Field Trip Safety (PDF)
- Duty or Standard of Care (PDF)
- Legal Implications of Duty of Care for Science Instruction
- Overcrowding in the Instructional Space (PDF)
- See also: "Overcrowding in K–12 STEM Classrooms and Labs" [Technology and Engineering Teacher, Vol. 76 No. 4, December/January 2017, pp. 38–39]
- Safety in the Media (PDF)
Disclaimer
- NSTA provides these safety resources to improve laboratory safety and give science teachers and school administrators safety information to make prudent decisions based on legal standards and better professional practices.
- NSTA does not assume liability for accuracy of information contained within these resources.
- NSTA does not imply that methodologies and suggestions outlined are the only applicable ones.
- Mention of products/companies and any links to items or websites is not intended to reflect endorsement.These resources DO NOT SUPERSEDE SCHOOL, SCHOOL SYSTEMS, LOCAL, STATE OR FEDERAL LAWS, REGULATIONS, CODES AND PROFESSIONAL STANDARDS. Ultimately it is the responsibility of science teachers and school administrators to use appropriate legal standards and better professional practices under duty of care to make the science laboratory as safe as possible.
This list DOES NOT SUPERSEDE SCHOOL, SCHOOL SYSTEMS, LOCAL, STATE OR FEDERAL LAWS, REGULATIONS, CODES AND PROFESSIONAL STANDARDS. Ultimately it is the responsibility of the science teachers and school administrators to use appropriate legal standards and better professional practices under duty of care to make the science laboratory safer.