Sorting Activities for Teachers
Download printable sorting activities to help your elementary students practice grouping different items into categories.
With activities aligned with the Common Core curriculum and editable options, this teacher resource collection is stocked with hundreds of resources perfect for elementary and middle school teachers,
Each sorting and grouping resource in this teaching resource collection has been created by a teacher, and each resource has undergone a rigorous review by the teachers on the Teach Starter team to ensure it's ready to download and use in your classroom.
Choose from sorting activities for math, ELA, science or social studies with printable and digital options available! This collection also includes sorting activities that can be used for whole class, group or independent tasks.
Curious about how our teacher team uses sorting activities to keep kids engaged and make learning more fun? Read on for a primer!
What Are Sorting Activities?
Let's start with a definition. When we talk about sorting activities at Teach Starter, we're referring to hands-on activities for students that require them to identify, sort, and group different items into alike categories.
This tests recognition and helps students develop their problem-solving skills.
Are you mostly familiar with sorting activities for preschool or kindergarten? We have those, but you'll also find activities designed for older students from 1st and 2nd grade all the way up through 5th and 6th grade.
The goal is to strengthen students' comparison skills and deepening their understanding of a particular topic by sorting cards, playing games and often matching items.
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How Long Does It Take? – Sorting Activity
A set of 18 daily events for students to sort based on how long they take (second, minute, hour).
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When Does It Happen? – Sorting Activity
Identify activities that happen in the morning, afternoon, and at night with a Time of Day Sorting activity for Kindergarten students.
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Instinct vs. Learned Behavior Sort
Help your students determine the difference between a learned behavior and an instinct with a thought-provoking sorting activity.
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3-Digit Number Form Sorting Activity
Engage with different forms of 3-digit numbers with this sorting activity.
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Natural and Human Made Heat Sources Sort
Explore the different man-made and natural heat sources with this sorting activity.
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Christmas Writing Center - Types of Sentences for 2nd Grade
Help your students answer “What Type of Sentence Is This?’ with a printable Christmas sorting activity on the 4 types of sentences.
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Santa's Syllable Sort - Christmas Reading Center
Help students practice breaking words into syllables with a Christmas literacy center.
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Singular or Plural? Christmas Noun Sort
Help your students determine if words are singular or plural with a fun Christmas-themed noun sorting center.
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Beginning Digraphs Sorting Activity
Practice decoding words by their initial digraphs with a set of 20 picture sorting cards.
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Vowel Teams Sort EE, EA, and EY
Decode words with EE, EA, or EY long "e" vowel teams using 18 picture cards with sorting mats.
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Color By Vowel Sound (Winter Worksheet for Kindergarten & 1st Grade)
Use a "cool" color by vowel sound worksheet to bring a bit of Winter into the classroom this season.
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Matching Expanded and Standard 2-Digit Number Cards
Explore double digit numbers in standard and expanded form with this sorting activity for your math groups.
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Heat Sources Sorting Activity
Explore various sources of heat with this printable sorting activity for your students.
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3rd Grade Divisible by 2 Sorting Activity
Explore numbers divisible by 2 with this fun snowboard-themed sorting activity.
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How Seasons Affect Plants and Animals Sorting Activity
Set up this sorting activity in your classroom to teach students how the seasons affect plants and animals by categorizing them.
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Odd and Even Properties Sorting Activity
Explore the properties of odd and even numbers when added, subtracted, divided and multiplied with this fun sorting activity
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Hansel and Gretel Retelling Activity Cards
Teach your students about retelling with this set of sequencing cards for Hansel and Gretel.
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Jack and Jill Nursery Rhyme- Retell Activity Cards
Teach your students about retelling with this set of sequencing cards for Jack and Jill.
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Gingerbread Man Retelling Activity Cards
Teach your students about retelling with this set of sequencing cards for The Gingerbread Man.
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3 Billy Goats Gruff Retelling Activity Cards
Teach your students about retelling with this set of sequencing cards for 3 Billy Goats Gruff.
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Growth or Fixed Mindset Sorting Activity
Help students understand the difference between a fixed mindset and a growth mindset with this sorting activity.
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2nd Grade Odd or Even Sorting Game (Coins)
Help your students practice their knowledge of odd and even numbers with this fun coin sorting activity.
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Focusing on Strengths Sorting Cards
Identify individual strengths with this set of strength vocabulary sorting cards.
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Skip Counting by 1, 2, 5 and 10 Sorting Activity
Set up this sorting activity as a small group or rotation task for your students to practise thier skip counting skills.
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Addition and Subtraction Rules for Odd and Even Numbers Matching Activity
A matching activity to use when learning addition and subtraction rules for odd and even numbers.
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2nd Grade Odd or Even Number Popcorn Sorting Activity
Sort popcorn shaped numbers into either the odd popcorn bucket or the even popcorn bucket.
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Verbal and Nonverbal Communication Sorting Activity
Use this sorting activity with your First Grade and Second Grade students to practice differentiating between verbal and nonverbal communication methods.
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Interior Angles of Shapes Sorting Activity
Play this sorting game when learning about the interior angles of common two-dimensional shapes.
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2nd Grade Odd and Even Monsters Sorting Activity
Sort odd and even numbers in this fun monster-themed sorting activity.
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Classifying Triangles (By Angles) – 4th Grade Math Activity
Play this sorting game when learning how to classify triangles according to their internal angles.
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Odd and Even Numbers Sorting Activity
Identify and sort 2- and 3-digit numbers into odd and even categories.
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Create a Silly Story – Sorting Activity
Explore story characters, settings, problems and solutions by creating a silly story!