SS011 Laboratory skills for science

This short laboratory school provides the opportunity for laboratory-based practical work, helping to build confidence in practical science techniques including recording, reporting and interpreting data.

Suitability

It is suitable for students who are studying or have successfully completed either S111, S112 or SM123. Priority will be given to students who are studying their final Stage 1 module.

If you have any additional requirements (e.g. accessibility or dietary requirements), please can you highlight these at an early stage so that we can discuss the reasonable adjustments that may need to be made. Staff running the lab schools are happy to put support in place to help all students access the lab school where possible. These include but are not limited to; reserved parking, stools in the labs, height-adjustable benches, materials sent in advance, a virtual lab tour. The teaching labs are all on a single floor with no steps. Personal assistants can be accommodated but will impact on the capacity of the lab school. Please don’t hesitate to contact us to discuss any arrangements you may need. Labcoats and all other PPE will be provided. 

Registration:  for SS011 can only be completed by telephone. Call +44 (0) 300 303 5303. Lines are open between 8am and 5:30pm Monday to Friday. Registration will open at 9am on 3rd March 2025 and will close at 5pm on 30th May 2025 for week 1, and 1st July for week 2, or whenever all spaces have been filled.

Information for 2026

Venue: The Open University Campus, Walton Hall, Milton Keynes, MK7 6AA

Duration: 2.5 days

Tuition Fee: £295

Laboratory school dates: Tuesday 14 – Thursday 16 July 2026
Make sure your travel plans allow you to register between 12:30 and 13:00 on the afternoon of day 1.

Travel and accommodation:

You will need to book and pay for your own accommodation, travel and food associated with the laboratory school. The tuition fee for the course and these additional costs cannot be covered with a part-time tuition fee loan. When booking accommodation please be aware of transportation requirements as the campus is several miles from the centre of Milton Keynes.

Experiments and techniques covered in the practical sessions 

There are three activities at the laboratory school.  Activity A: the determination of water hardness and radioactivity; Activity B: analysing our environment and Activity C: a biology seed experiment.

In Activity A you will:

• Determine the hardness of water samples by carrying out titrations and hence, calculate the ‘hardness’ of a water sample. Techniques used: preparing solutions, pipetting and titrations.
• Use a Geiger counter to measure background count, the radioactivity of various radioactive sources and the absorption of radiation by various sources. Techniques used: handling radioactive sources, recording data, plotting graphs and interpreting results.

In Activity B you will:

• Use qualitative and quantitative methods to determine various metal ions in a water sample. Techniques used: preparing solutions, colorimetry, observing and recording changes in chemical reactions, plotting calibration graphs and interpreting results.
• Qualitatively identify various metals in solids, using flame tests and a hand-held spectroscope. Techniques used: flame tests using Bunsen burners, interpreting line spectra, recording observations and interpreting results.
• Determine the angles of diffraction of spectral lines from a sodium source and identify unknown metals and other elements using a grating spectrometer.  Techniques used: spectrometry, diffraction, numerical calculations, recording and interpreting data. 

In Activity C you will:

• Investigate the effect of salt solution on seedling germination and growth.  
• Take measurements, perform numerical calculations, record and interpret data

Information for 2027

Venue: The Open University Campus, Walton Hall, Milton Keynes, MK7 6AA

Duration: 2.5 days

Tuition Fee: £330

Laboratory school dates: Monday 12 – Wednesday 14 July 2027
Make sure your travel plans allow you to register between 12:30 and 13:00 on the afternoon of day 1.