Hold up a small toy boat in one hand and a stone in the other. Do not put either in water yet. Take a quick show of hands for each guess. Keep the beat light and playful.

Have the water tray filled and covered or set aside so it is ready for the next steps but not yet the centre of attention.

Say each word with a big gesture so the board text can stay tiny: hand flat on top of the water surface for float; hand swooping down for sink. Invite the class to copy the gestures once.

Misconception to head off gently: children often think big things always sink and small things always float. Keep language simple: we watch what each thing does, and size is not the rule by itself.

Worked cycle to model later with one object (the cork): I wonder if the cork will float or sink. I think it will float. I put it in gently. I see it stays on top. I think the cork floats.

Drive the float-or-sink interactive on the IWB in explore mode. The five objects on screen are exactly: cork, spoon, stone, sponge, toy boat.

For each object: hold up the real matching item from the tray, ask the class to call out float or sink, then tap the matching guess on screen. Do not drop anything in the interactive until every object has a guess. The Drop control stays locked until a prediction is in, so the class cannot skip guessing.

Keep energy high and short. Guesses are never wrong; they are the start of the fun.

Leave the guesses visible. You will come back to them after the real water tray.

Before this step

• Fill shallow water trays (one per table group of 4–6, or one class station with short rotations if adults are limited).
• Set out matching wet-play objects: cork, metal spoon, stone, clean sponge, small toy boat.
• Keep a second dry set of the same five objects well away from the water for the hoop sort later.
• Towels under and beside every tray. Sleeves rolled up.

Default traffic plan (about 8 minutes including model)

• Ideal: 3–4 pre-filled trays with an adult (teacher or SNA) at each. Groups of 4–6 sit or stand at their tray.
• One adult only: run one class tray at the front. Rotate 4–5 children at a time for about 1–2 minutes each burst; the rest of the class watches and calls float or sink. Watching is participation — no parallel desk task.
• Each child places one object gently, says what they see (float or sink), then the next child goes. Do not queue every child try every object if time is tight; share results aloud across the group.

Model first (about 1 minute)

With the whole class watching one tray, run the full spoken cycle with the cork only:

• I wonder if the cork will float or sink.
• I think it will float.
• Place it in gently.
• I see it stays on top.
• I think the cork floats.

Then play

Keep language to float and sink. Cheer surprises (for example a big sponge that floats).

What to expect: cork, dry sponge and toy boat float; metal spoon and stone sink. A sponge may soak and sit lower; still talk about it staying mostly up at first. If a toy boat tips, reshape the talk gently: boats need a good shape to stay up.

Safety: no tasting water; wipe spills straight away; mind slippery floors. An adult stays at every water station in use.

Gather briefly at the IWB and scroll back up to the guessing step, where the float-or-sink activity still holds the class guesses. Drop each object there so the result sits beside the guess the class made. Use the real wet objects on a tray as you talk.

Prompts to ask aloud:

• Which ones stayed on top?
• Which ones went to the bottom?
• Which guess matched what we saw?
• Which one surprised us?

Keep this oral and short. Do not ask children to write. Revoice their words: float and sink.