Teaching essential science skills at the beginning of the school year is one of the best investments you can make as a middle or high school science teacher. Before students can be successful in biology, chemistry, physical science, or environmental science, they need to know how to use laboratory equipment, collect accurate data, create graphs, make observations, and think like scientists. When students master these foundational science skills early in the year, labs run more smoothly, students become more independent, and you spend less time answering the same questions over and over.
👉 Science Skills Chat Lab Station Activities
If you've taught science for any length of time, you've probably heard questions like these:
- Which one of these is the graduated cylinder?
- How do I convert from decimeters to decameters?
- I can't do scientific notation on my calculator.
- What are independent and dependent variables, and where do they go on a graph?
- You wanted the graph on graph paper?
- I measured exactly 5 grams of salt! (...in a beaker that was never massed.)
- What do I do next?
Sound familiar?
If you're looking for a back-to-school science activity that reviews laboratory equipment, graphing, metric measurement, scientific notation, and the scientific method, these science skills lab stations are an easy way to prepare students before their first major lab. They work well in biology, chemistry, physical science, environmental science, and general science classrooms.
Students come to us with very different science backgrounds. Some are already comfortable with graphing, measurement, lab equipment, and the scientific method. Others are still learning how to read a graduated cylinder or identify the independent variable in an experiment.
That is why I believe strongly in teaching these foundational science skills before students begin more advanced labs. The time you invest early in the school year will pay off all year long.
That's exactly why I created Science Skills Chat Lab Stations, a set of 17 ready-to-use science lab stations for middle and high school classrooms that help students review graphing, metric measurement, scientific notation, laboratory equipment, the scientific method, and other foundational science skills before they begin your major lab activities.
👉 You can take a closer look at Science Skills Chat here.
Science Skills Activities That Prepare Students for the Lab
Science content changes from unit to unit, but science skills are used all year. Students need to measure, observe, calculate, graph, analyze, and communicate results whether they are studying biology, chemistry, physical science, or environmental science.
A great place to begin is with basic laboratory equipment. If students are comfortable using a graduated cylinder, metric ruler, laboratory balance, and Celsius thermometer, they will be ready when those tools are used in future lab investigations.
Why Science Skills Lab Stations Work Better Than a Lecture
Students do not learn to use science skills by listening to teachers talk about them. They learn by practicing. They learn by making mistakes, asking questions, correcting those mistakes, and trying again.
This is especially true for skills such as scientific notation, the scientific method, metric units, and graphing. These are not one-time lessons. Students need repeated practice with them in a setting where they can talk through the process.
How to Use These Science Skills Chat Lab Stations
One of the questions I hear most often is, "How do you fit 17 stations into your schedule?"
It's a mistake to try to fit in all 17 lab stations in one activity. I usually choose four or five stations that match the skills students need before an upcoming lab. For example, before our first investigation, students might rotate through the graduated cylinder, metric ruler, laboratory balance, and Celsius thermometer stations.
Later in the year, I pull out different stations before teaching graphing, scientific notation, or the scientific method. Because each activity stands alone, the stations become a resource I can use all year instead of just during the first week of school.
Why I Created These Science Skills Chat Lab Stations
To help my students review and strengthen these skills, I created Science Skills Chat, a set of 17 collaborative lab stations focused on the essential skills students need in science class.
I use the word chat on purpose. Students are not meant to sit silently and complete worksheets in isolation. They are expected to work together, talk through problems, ask questions, and help one another understand the skill being practiced at each station.
This kind of peer tutoring is powerful. I like to arrange groups so that each group has at least one strong student. Students who are less confident often feel more comfortable asking a classmate for help than raising their hand and asking the teacher in front of the whole class. At the same time, the stronger students deepen their own understanding by explaining their thinking to someone else.
A Favorite Station: Lab Equipment Card Sort
One of my favorite stations is the Lab Equipment Card Sort. Students work together to match 42 common pieces of laboratory equipment with their names and functions.
This station is a great example of why the "chat" format works so well. Students are not just memorizing a list of equipment names. They are looking at the equipment, reading the function cards, discussing possibilities, and making decisions together. That kind of interaction helps the information stick.
The Scientific Method Station
The scientific method is another skill that students will use again and again. In this station, students practice identifying variables, designing an experiment, organizing data, graphing results, and drawing conclusions.
I like this station because it pulls together so many important science process skills in one place. Students are not just defining vocabulary words. They are applying the scientific method to an actual scenario and using data to support a conclusion.
What Skills Are Included?
Science Skills Chat includes 17 lab stations. Some require lab equipment, while others can be completed in the classroom or even used as homework or sub plans.
The stations include:
- Metric Units
- Identification of Lab Equipment
- Scientific Notation
- Dimensional Analysis
- Significant Digits
- The Scientific Method
- Tabling, Graphing, and Analyzing Data
- The Graduated Cylinder
- The Metric Ruler
- The Laboratory Balance
- The Celsius Thermometer
- The Bunsen Burner
- Determining the Volume of Solids
- Separating a Mixture
- Determining Density
- Accuracy, Precision, and Percentage Error
- Scientific Drawings
You Do Not Have to Complete All 17 Stations at Once
You do not have to complete all 17 lab stations in a multi-day marathon session. That would be too much for most classes, and student retention of the skills would suffer.
I suggest choosing 4 or 5 stations that match the skills your students need most right away. For example, if you are getting ready to begin your first lab, you may want students to practice using the graduated cylinder, laboratory balance, metric ruler, and Celsius thermometer first.
Later in the year, you can pull out another group of stations when those skills are needed. This makes the resource useful long after the first week of school.
Try Science Skills Friday
One of my favorite ways to use this resource is to create a "Science Skills Friday." Choose a small group of stations and use them as a weekly review and reinforcement day.
This works especially well because students are not overwhelmed by too many stations at once. They get focused practice on a few important skills, and the completed handouts can be kept in a notebook for reference later in the year.
You can also use individual stations for review before a lab, intervention, early finishers, or emergency sub plans. Some stations do require lab equipment, but several can be completed without a full lab setup.
What Is Included in Science Skills Chat?
This resource includes everything you need to set up the stations and guide students through the activities.
- 17 collaborative science skills lab stations
- Student handouts
- Lab station instruction cards
- 12-page teacher guide
- 30-page answer key
- Editable files
"I used these during the first two weeks of school, and my students were so much more confident during our first full lab! Total game-changer." – Melissa B., HS Biology Teacher
Ready to Help Your Students Master Essential Science Skills?
If your students need practice with lab equipment, graphing, metric measurement, scientific notation, scientific method, or other foundational science skills, Science Skills Chat gives you a ready-to-use way to build those skills through discussion, collaboration, and hands-on practice.
Because the stations are ready to print and use, you spend your time helping students learn instead of creating review activities from scratch. As the year goes on, you will spend less time reteaching basic skills and more time helping students think, investigate, and understand the science content in front of them.
And honestly, how nice would it be to reduce the number of questions you get every time you go to the lab?
View Science Skills Chat in my TpT store.
Whether you teach biology, chemistry, physical science, environmental science, or general science, these foundational skills will prepare your students for a successful year in the laboratory.
Looking for more classroom ideas? Be sure to read my blog post, The Ultimate Guide to Teaching Science Process Skills, where you'll find dozens of teaching strategies, classroom activities, and science resources all in one place.
Frequently Asked Questions
When should I teach science skills?
I like to teach these science skills during the first few weeks of school before students begin more complex laboratory investigations. Building these skills early helps students become more confident using lab equipment, collecting data, graphing results, and designing experiments. I also revisit individual skills throughout the year whenever students need a refresher.
What grade levels are these science lab stations designed for?
Science Skills Chat was created primarily for middle school and high school science classrooms. The activities work well in biology, chemistry, physical science, environmental science, and integrated science courses. Many teachers also use them with honors classes, intervention groups, or as review before major labs.
Do students complete all 17 stations at one time?
No. I don't recommend this.
I usually choose four or five stations that match the skills my students need before an upcoming lab. Later in the year, I bring out different stations as those skills become important. This makes the resource useful throughout the entire school year instead of only during back-to-school season.
What science skills do students practice?
Students review many of the science process skills they use all year long, including laboratory equipment, metric measurement, scientific notation, graphing, data analysis, significant figures, dimensional analysis, scientific drawings, density, the scientific method, and experimental design.
Can these science activities be used for sub plans or review?
Absolutely. While several stations require laboratory equipment, many can be completed in a regular classroom without a lab setup. Teachers frequently use them for review days, intervention, early finishers, science stations, and emergency sub plans.
How much preparation is required for these science lab stations?
The amount of preparation depends on the stations you choose. The resource includes student handouts, station instruction cards, a teacher guide, answer keys, and editable files. Some stations only require printing, while others use common laboratory equipment such as graduated cylinders, balances, rulers, and thermometers.
Related Science Skills Blog Posts
If you are looking for more ideas for building science skills at the beginning of the year, these blog posts may also help:
- Teach the Skills Please
- 5 Science Skills Your Students Need
- Graphing in the Science Classroom
- Biology Prefixes and Suffixes: Strengthening Science Vocabulary
- Wanna Chat? Reasons My Chat Lab Stations Work
- Science Lab Equipment Activities for High School Students
Are your students struggling with the math side of chemistry? Before students can be successful in a chemistry class, they need a strong foundation in scientific measurements, significant figures, scientific notation, dimensional analysis, graphing, and more. This blog post tells you how I teach these essential skills, and shows examples of my complete Chemistry Measurement Unit that prepares students for success all year long.
