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Brick Float

Water fun with bricks!

Download a fully illustrated pdf, or print this webpage.

Skills we will be engaging

  • SOCIAL - Talking, listening, asking for help.

  • EMOTIONAL - Happy, excitement and managing frustration.

  • COGNITIVE - Problem solving.

  • CREATIVE - Using bricks in new ways.

  • PHYSICAL- Handling bricks when they are wet/dry.

You will need

  • A sink or container with water in it.

  • Lots of different bricks.

How to play

  1. Build something from bricks that could float on water.

  2. Test it. See if it floats in water.

  3. Make changes to your build to try to help it to float better.

Go with the flow

If your build doesn’t float, that’s ok! You can chat together about what you could try out next time. If it does float…fantastic! You might like to chat about how to add extra bits to your floating creation.

Adapt the activity

  • Have a picture from a book or device with examples of things that float to help your child to visualise ideas to build.

  • Carry on developing your build! Here are a few more ideas: Make the float bigger; Try to style your existing float.

  • Build a second floating model and see which model can float across the water the fastest.

  • Build an island from bricks and add it to the water.

  • Build a bridge at the edge of the water.

  • Try to build a different floating model using different bricks.

  • Take photos during your build so you can see how your build changes as you develop it.

Including others

  • Build in teams and then race your floats.

  • Invite a friend or sibling to build with your child.

Signs of Success

If you've had fun, got a bit wet, and tested out some floating objects, then it's been a great success (even if your model sank!).