Sink or Float — Interactive Lesson (Year 1)

Will a cork sink or float? This 25-slide interactive lesson teaches sink or float, encouraging children to predict before they find out.

Learning About Sink or Float in Year 1 Science

Children learn to explain what it means for an object to float or sink, recognise common objects that do each, predict whether different objects will sink or float before testing them, and explain their predictions. They consider familiar objects such as a leaf, a stone, a rubber duck, a screw and a cork, and reason about why a brick sinks while a plastic bottle floats. A comparison of a hollow bowl and one filled with stones extends thinking about how shape and material affect the result.

What’s Included

• 25-slide interactive lesson on sink or float
• Learning objectives on predicting, testing and explaining
• Familiar objects including a cork, a brick and a rubber duck
• Image-choice and sorting activities comparing objects
• Reasoning questions on hollow versus filled containers

Key Benefits for Students

• Encourages children to predict before testing
• Builds simple scientific reasoning about everyday objects
• Uses objects children can test for themselves
• Instant feedback on answer questions

Why Teachers Love It

• No prep — ready for whole-class teaching on an interactive whiteboard
• Pairs naturally with a real sink-or-float classroom investigation
• Self-marking questions support independent practice
• Suits small groups and whole-class sessions
• A memorable first taste of scientific enquiry

Love this? You’ll love…

• What Do Animals Eat? — Interactive Lesson (KS1)
• The Sense of Sight — Interactive Lesson (Ages 5–7)
• Transportation Word Search — Interactive Game (Years 1–3)

A dependable addition to a Year 1 science topic, giving children an early, hands-on introduction to prediction and testing. Sink or float is one of the simplest and most memorable ways to begin scientific enquiry.

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FAQs

What year group is this for?
Year 1 (ages 5–6).

Does it encourage prediction before testing?
Yes — predicting is one of the core learning objectives.

Is it self-marking?
Yes, with instant feedback on the questions.