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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Unit Fraction Sorting Activity
Explore different images of unit fractions with your students in this unit fraction sorting activity with fraction word and fraction heading cards.
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Hours, Seconds & Minutes - Estimating Time Sort
Estimate activities that take about a second, minute, hour, and week with a printable unit of time sorting activity.
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Rhetorical Devices Sorting Activity
Explore rhetorical devices with your students using this set of sorting cards.
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Focusing on Strengths Sorting Cards
Identify individual strengths with this set of strength vocabulary sorting cards.
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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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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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Asking for Help Sorting Activity
Explore whether a question is an 'ask now' question 'wait' question with this sorting activity.
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Affixes Word Building Puzzle Activity
Build words with affixes with a pack of printable word-building puzzles.
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Story Setting or Not? - Sorting Activity
Explore the difference between story settings and non-settings with this hands-on sorting activity.
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Word Building Bricks - Prefixes, Suffixes, and Roots Activity
Build, read and write multi-syllable words using prefixes, suffixes, and base words with a fun word-building literacy activity.
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Types of Weather – Sorting Activity
Observe and categorize pictures showing different types of weather with this sorting activity.
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Sustainability Activity - Caring for the Environment Sort
Promote sustainable living with a sustainability sorting activity.
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Dictionary Sorting Game
Get students in the habit of researching with our dictionary activity that helps learners match a word to its definition and part of speech.
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Animal Classification Sort
Determine if an animal is an amphibian, reptile, mammal, or bird with this sorting activity.
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Singular and Plural Possessives Task Cards
Practice writing phrases using the correct singular or plural possessive noun with a set of task cards.
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Rotation vs. Revolution – Sorting Activity
Determine if examples are due to Earth’s rotation or revolution with this sorting activity.
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Synonyms or Antonyms? Upper Grades Sorting Activity
Identify synonyms and antonyms with a sorting activity designed for upper elementary students.
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Equivalent Fractions - Cookie Jar Sorting Activity
Review equivalent fractions with this whole-class sorting activity that gets students moving and simplifying!
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Herbivores, Carnivores, and Omnivores – Sorting Activity
Determine if animals are omnivores, carnivores, or herbivores based on their diet with this sorting activity.
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Community Helpers - Pictures/Posters
A set of 38 half-size community helpers picture posters showing different community helpers and where they work.
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How Would I Feel? Sorting Activity
Develop emotional vocabulary using these real-life scenario cards.
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Good Citizens Around Town Sorting Activity
Discover how to be a good citizen at home, school, and community with citizenship for kids sorting activity.
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Has/Have Subject Verb Agreement Task Cards
Practice using has and have correctly using a set of Subject-Verb agreement task cards.
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U.S. Branches of Government Sorting Activity
Learn about the branches of the U.S. government, each branch's responsibilities and those that are involved in each branch using a sorting activity.
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Dressing for the Physical Environment Sorting Activity
Help children learn about dressing for the environment by sorting clothing items into categories for warm climate and cold climate.
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Nearest Inch, 1/4 Inch, 1/2 Inch Sorting Activity
Practice measuring to the nearest ¼ inch, ½ inch, and inch with this set of 20 sorting cards.
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Using Commas in Dates and Series Sorting Activity
Practice correct comma placement in dates and series with a sorting activity.
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Counting Objects Sort - Numbers 6-10
Practice counting 6 – 10 objects with this colorful sorting activity.
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Counting Objects Sort - Numbers 1-5
Practice counting 1 – 5 objects with this colorful sorting activity.
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Past, Present, and Future Verb Tense Sentence Sort
Identify sentences written in past, present, and future tense with task cards designed for primary grades.
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Wee Willie Winkie Nursery Rhyme - Poster and Cut-Out Pages
A poetry activity using the nursery rhyme "Wee Willie Winkie".