Chemistry should be fun and exciting, but much preparation and skill are needed by the teacher and students in working with chemicals. Unfortunately, accidents do happen and things can blow up, but you can help prevent these incidents by knowing and following proper safety procedures. Knowing which chemicals are appropriate for the middle level classroom is a good place to start. The following is a list of appropriate and inappropriate chemicals for the science lab as specified by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) Laboratory Standards.