Vignette Science Safety Charades in a Third Grade

In Ms. Rivera’s third-grade classroom in Sacramento, students gather on the rug for their first science safety lesson of the year. On the board, Ms. Rivera has written: “Scientists keep themselves, their classmates, and their classroom safe.”

“Today,” she tells the class, “we are going to learn safety rules the way scientists often learn best: by observing, thinking, talking, and practicing.”

Ms. Rivera explains that students will work in small groups to play Science Safety Charades, an activity adapted from a lab safety resource in which students plan and act out unsafe science behaviors, then identify the safer choices that should be used instead. The activity includes unsafe behavior cards, a planning sheet, and a class recording sheet for science safety expectations.

Each group receives one unsafe behavior card. One group reads, “Tasting a substance to see what it is.” Another group receives, “Carrying scissors with you as you move around the room.” A third group gets, “Whispering to your lab partners while the teacher is talking.” Ms. Rivera reminds students that they will act out the unsafe behavior without using real materials in unsafe ways. “Our job is to show the problem safely,” she says, “so the class can decide what a responsible scientist would do instead.”

Students move to tables to plan their short skits. Ms. Rivera circulates, asking guiding questions: “What makes that choice unsafe?” “Who could get hurt?” “What would a safer scientist do?” At one table, students decide to show a pretend spill and then freeze before cleaning it up themselves. When they perform for the whole group, the class quickly identifies the safer action: tell the teacher right away. Ms. Rivera records the expectation on chart paper: Report spills immediately.

As each group performs, classmates use thumbs-up signals when they recognize the unsafe behavior. After guessing, students discuss the safer rule: read all directions before beginning, listen while the teacher is giving instructions, waft to smell a substance, never taste unknown materials, report broken equipment, keep belongings off the floor, use goggles and tools correctly, wash hands when instructed, and ask for help if injured.

At the end of the lesson, Ms. Rivera invites students to help turn the class discussion into a shared safety agreement. Students write one safety expectation in their science notebooks and explain why it matters. One student writes, “I will tell the teacher if something spills because someone could slip or the material could be unsafe.” Another writes, “I will read all the directions before touching materials because I need to know what to do first.”

Ms. Rivera closes the lesson by saying, “In our classroom, being safe is part of being a scientist. We take care of ourselves, our tools, and each other.” The class signs the science safety expectations sheet, and Ms. Rivera posts the chart near the investigation materials so students can refer to it before future hands-on science lessons. Ms. Rivera will continue to revisit safety expectations throughout the year, as they apply to specific investigations.