How To Furnish Your Science Lab
School preparations are a hectic process that can consume a lot of your time and a lot of effort. When buying school furniture you will need to make a lot of decisions and research the different types of materials before making the buying decision and many more decisions that need a lot of help from specialists and knowledgeable people. And one of the most hectic steps of that long process which many school owners find it hard is furnishing labs. Today, we will discuss how to make your science lab for the school.
Why do you need to make a science lab in your school?
The science lab is one of the most mesmerizing experiences for any kid at a young age. In the science lab, they can see their theoretical materials in real life and apply some of this knowledge in the science lab. The kids can experience and do some scientific experiments themselves with their own hands. Such experience can increase their curiosity and complement the education process.
That is why you will need to make sure to furnish the science lab properly, so in this article, we will guide you through the process step by step.
The science lab has specific requirements:
Since the science lab has a lot of chemicals and hazardous materials that many kids use and touch which means that preparing the science lab needs extra caution and extra care. This put the one who is responsible for this process at a tough point where they need to make sure that everything is perfectly done and efficiently made.
Location:
First things first, the location of the science lab is a very important criterion that will affect the process that your students will need to go through to enjoy their science lectures and experiences. The science lab in your school needs to be in a spacious place where you can fit all the equipment and all the students you need (since in most scenarios it will need to fit a whole class of students at a time) as well as the storage units that will be added to your lab. The space which is finally assigned to be the science lab also needs to have 2 entries and exits if the space is more than 92.9 square meters to provide dual entry for the student and prevent crowdedness.
The windows and natural light:
Since this is a science lab then you will need sunlight. Sunlight is one of the elements that is needed to complete some of the scientific experiments that the students will require to do. So making big windows facing north or south might be a good consideration to put in mind.
The layout of the space:
The layout of your space is very necessary for the ease of your students and the activities they will need to perform. Usually, science labs try to lay out their seating in the U shape as it provides students ease and flexibility as well as gives everyone a good view of the experiments performed. So make sure to put that in mind.
Storage:
In labs, in general, there is a lot of expensive equipment and especially in science labs, there are also some chemicals or hazardous materials that need special attention. You will need to put that in mind when you prepare your storage units.
Lab furniture:
Your lab furniture needs to be made specifically to suit lab purposes, for example, the seats in the science lab need to be high so students can reach the counter and see what is going on. Also, your furniture needs to suit the space, and the number of students which might cause some students to stand up which also could lead to an accident. Your lab furniture needs to be preferably made out of compact wood which prevents fires and suits the science. The compact wood is also good as it is lightweight but still gives you the strength you need. Using wood in general is very good as wood is heat and electricity resistant which helps to keep the kids safe.
Safety:
Safety is a necessary element if not the most important element to consider when making your science lab in your school. In this section, we will discuss the safety precautions you can take.
Easy entry and exist:
As we have mentioned before the labs might need 2 entry/ exit doors depending on the space to ease the movement of the students but it is also extremely important for the safety of the students as it can ease the exiting of the lab in case of emergency. So, make sure to always ease the student’s way out even if you won’t be adding 2 exit ways may be consider having a big door or simply keeping the space around the door clear of any equipment or chairs that might block students’ way out.
Laboratory activities:
The science lab usually is used for different experiments (chemical, biological, physics, etc) which means that not all the experiments are equal, some are more dangerous than others so you might need to get a separate room for the more dangerous experiments where you can take extra care and safety precautions.
Clear way:
Chemicals and students both make a dangerous combo, any trip or fall will cause a tragedy. This is why you might need to give extra care to the floor.
- Make sure the floor isn’t slippery
- Make sure there are no nails out or anything the students could trip over
Safety measures:
The safety measures you need to take and make your students take are:
- Make sure they have their hair tied back.
- They also need to make sure that their clothing has no dangling parts or anything that could cause an accident.
- Make sure that everyone is wearing eye shields or glasses.
- You need to make to plug off the equipment after using them if they are connected to electricity.
- Make sure that none is eating or drinking in the lab.
Lab ventilation:
Since there will be some chemical experiments, there might be chemical fumes that need to be ventilated, so make sure to provide different ways to ventilate these fumes, like having big windows or a ventilation system.
Alarm Sensors:
In your lab, you will need alarm sensors to prevent any fires or accidents.
This is all you need when it comes to your science lab hope this was helpful. If you needed to let go of this hard and long process then consider hiring us (Joy & Learn) to help you furnish your lab professionally.
