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By Joel Howard, Customer Service Manager
jhoward@pitsco.com
I recently had the opportunity to visit several science labs
that were implemented within the last year. I can honestly
say that every time I visit a school I see some new idea
or strategy that I had not seen before. Well, if any of you have
a science lab or have even visited one, you know the amount of
hands-on products in these labs can be overwhelming.
There are test tubes, DNA strands, microscope slides, and
possibly even owl pellets! Accounting for all of these items and
keeping them from being damaged and/or disappearing can prove
very challenging. Not that any of this is news to anyone, but I saw
firsthand some excellent examples of how to handle the situation.
With each Module we supply storage containers, plastic
bins, test tube racks, and so forth. However, these are more of
a one-size-fits-all solution as we have no idea what your specific
situation will be.
In the labs I visited, the facilitators took organization to a new
level. For instance, at one school they had rather large workstations
with divider panels on the sides and front. This gave them
considerable space to display the equipment. They had used what
must have been miles of Velcro® to attach/display almost every
small component of the Module. They also had the items labeled
with the session they were used in and what they were actually
called within the Module content.
If possible, they were laid out in session order from left
to right. This was beneficial in so many ways. Obviously, it made
it easier for the students to progress through the content because
there was almost no time spent searching for the components
they needed. It made the instructor’s job much easier, as they
were no longer answering multiple call lights just to help
students find their equipment. Keeping track of inventory was
now a snap, plus damage to equipment was reduced. They had
even created their own test tube racks to house the exact number
of test tubes that would be needed for each class and labeled
them accordingly.
The end result of all this organization is a better-educated student
due to less time spent hunting and more time spent learning. Plus
it yields a less-stressed facilitator who is able to spend more time
teaching and less time looking for misplaced equipment.
We do our best to meet your needs with our Modules, but
remember that after they are delivered, they are yours. Use your
creativity, knowledge, and skills to make them work for you.