Someone recently reached out to me asking about my top lab equipment essentials for teaching middle school science. I thought this would be a good blog post! I know that I used to struggle every year when it came time to select supplies with our science department budget because I’d forget what I’d used, what I’d run out of, what I’d intended to remember for next year, etc. I started keeping a running list tacked on the bulletin board next to my desk. In the Spring, I’m ready to order! Click here to Make a Copy of this Google Sheets Supply List template.
Here is my best start at a lab essentials list for middle school science. Most of these items are available through science supply companies like Flinn Scientific, Wards, Nasco, Carolina, etc. There are different tiers of ‘need’, so if you have access to a certain amount of money, you can narrow down what’s most essential!
General Science Must Haves
foodservice lunch trays, sturdy plastic bowls, stopwatches, rulers and meter sticks, thermometers, test tubes, test tube racks, beakers (50mL, 100mL, 250mL, 600mL, 1000mL, Erlenmeyer flasks (125mL, 250mL, 500mL, 1000mL), boiling flasks (500mL, 1000mL), flask stoppers that match Erlenmeyer and boiling flask sizes, graduated cylinders (10mL, 25mL, 50mL, 100mL), student goggles, pipettes, scoop spatulas, test tube brushes, hot plates, hot mitts, digital scales, dust pan/brush, clear plastic shoeboxes, strainer
General Science Nice to Have
sterilizing goggle cabinet, a periodic table, drying rack, extension cords, flex-neck lamps, chem-plates, glass stirring rods, mortar and pestle
General Science Must Have Food/Grocery Stuff
baking soda, vinegar, table salt, food coloring, corn starch, yeast, Alka-seltzer, plastic cups and spoons, cotton balls, coffee filters, lighters, dish soap, straws, masking tape, duct tape, sandwich bags, aluminum foil, plastic wrap, wax paper, sand paper, toothpicks, fishing line, paper plates
Physical Science Nice to Have
triple beam balances, conductivity meter, spring scales (500g, 1000g, 5000g), funnels, filter paper, plasma ball, balloons, toy cars (like Melissa and Doug pull-back vehicles), slinkies, magnets, motion detectors, marbles, washers, concave and convex lenses, pH paper, universal indicator; if you have gas in your lab: ring stands, test tube clamps, test tube holders, ring clamps, wire gauze, clay triangles, Bunsen burners, strikers and flints, tubing
Physical Science Chemicals
potassium chlorate (gummy bear demo), aluminum potassium sulfate (mystery solutions inquiry lab), aluminum, carbon, copper turning and filings, magnesium ribbon, silicon, sulfur , calcium, zinc, iron filings, hydrochloric acid, hydrogen peroxide (3%), copper (II) chloride, sulfuric acid, sodium hydroxide
Earth Science Nice to Have
rock and mineral sample sets, flashlights, globe, geophysical relief map, stream tables, aquarium gravel, sand, dirt, soil test kits, streak plates, compasses, models (land forms, fossils, Earth’s interior, solar system, etc.)
Life Science Nice to Have
compound microscopes, microscope slides and cover slips, Petri dishes, forceps, dissection trays and pins, nutrient agar, pH paper, universal indicator, bromthymol blue, iodine, phenolphthalein magnifying glasses, eyedroppers, plastic wash bottles, models (cell, brain, ear, eye, flower, heart, lung, skeleton, etc.)
Please please please add more of your ideas and things that I missed in the comments below!
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