What every lab needs, what each subject adds, and the order to buy it in.
Equipping a school lab does not start with a catalogue, it starts with the curriculum. The useful question is not “what equipment exists?” but “what do I have to be able to demonstrate this year, and what is the minimum kit that makes it measurable?” This guide follows that order: first what no lab can do without, then what each subject needs, and finally how to prioritise when the budget will not stretch to everything.
On top of the shared kit, each subject has its own core. We have written a detailed guide for each one, with the sensor list, the experiments they cover and what it costs to start:
The most common mistake is buying one of many different things. A single sensor of each type produces a demonstration the teacher performs at the front while thirty students watch. Six of the same sensor produce six groups measuring in parallel, comparing results and arguing about why they differ — which is where the learning happens.
A well-bought, badly-supported lab gets used once. The difference between equipment that enters the teaching routine and equipment that gets shelved is almost never the equipment: it is whether the teacher had half a day to set it up, break it and set it up again before standing in front of a class. When you request a quote, the question with the biggest effect on real usage is not the price — it is what training is included and who answers when something fails mid-lesson.
The four criteria above — buy depth, software included, cost per year and teacher preparation time — rule out more catalogues than you would expect. At Districalc we equip labs with Vernier because it is the system that meets all four at once, and because a single supplier for physics, chemistry and biology avoids the most expensive situation of all: three different platforms, three pieces of software to learn, and nobody to call when something fails mid-lesson.
You can browse the full Vernier catalogue, or check what each bundle contains in the subject guides above. If you would rather start from a diagnosis, tell us which curriculum units you need to cover and we will build the list around that.
There is no single figure, because it depends on how many groups will work in parallel and which subjects it must cover. The variable that moves the total most is not the catalogue but the number of stations: a lab for six groups costs roughly twice one for three, with the same equipment list. The most useful approach is to define how many stations you need and which curriculum units each must cover, then quote against that.
Yes, and it is usually the sensible route. Glassware, a balance and safety kit are the base and do not change. Sensors are added subject by subject and unit by unit, starting with the one that covers the content hardest to teach abstractly. It is worth choosing a system whose sensors share one piece of software from the outset, so you do not end up with three different platforms nobody wants to learn.
Three is the sensible maximum for everyone to take part; at four or more, one measures, one writes and the rest watch. For a class of thirty that means eight to ten stations if you want genuinely simultaneous work. Many schools solve the budget by rotating: half the class in the lab with six stations while the other half works on the data from the previous session.
Primary schools do not need a lab with fixed benches: a mobile cart that comes into the classroom works better. The priority is robust, direct-reading equipment — magnifiers, simple balances, large thermometers — and sensors that show the reading on screen with no setup. At that age the goal is for a child to see a number change when something in the world changes, not to master a lab procedure.
It depends on the manufacturer, and it is one of the biggest three-year cost differences. Some systems charge a per-device annual licence; others include the software free with no installation limit. Before comparing sensor prices, ask in writing for the total software cost for your school's device count over three years — that is where the surprises show up.
We recommend Vernier, and the reason is total cost rather than the sensor itself: the software carries no annual licence, the sensors share one platform across subjects, and they need no separate interface. That said, the right decision depends on which curriculum units you have to cover and how many stations you need — those two facts change the list more than the brand does.
Tell us how many stations you need and which subjects it must cover, and we will put together a proposal with teacher training included.
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