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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Has/Have Subject Verb Agreement Task Cards
Practice using has and have correctly using a set of Subject-Verb agreement task cards.
- Free Plan
Insulators & Conductors Sorting Activity
Distinguish between insulators and conductors with a picture-based sorting activity.
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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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Selecting Units of Mass – Sorting Activity
A sorting activity to help students identify objects that should be measured in ounces, pounds, and tons.
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Physical and Chemical Changes - Sorting Activity
A set of 24 sorting cards to practice identifying physical and chemical changes.
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Goods and Services Sorting Activity
Identify things as either "goods" or "services" by looking at 20 examples and sorting them into their appropriate category.
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Initial Sound Sorting Activity (s, a, t, p, i, and n)
A sorting activity to practice initial sounds regarding the letters s, a, t, p, i, and n.
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Word Family Sorting Activity - Set 1
A sorting activity to practice word families.
- Free Plan
Line and Feeling Sorting Activity - Primary Grades
A fun sorting activity for students to explore interpretation of line in visual art.
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Let's Sort It! - 2D and 3D Shapes
Play this sorting game when learning about the properties of 2D and 3D shapes.
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Time Sort - Morning, Afternoon & Evening Activity
Help your students learn about different times of day (morning, afternoon, and evening) with a Times of Day Sorting activity.
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Movement of Animals Sorting Activity
Spark discussion among your students about how animals move with a fun set of animal locomotion picture cards.
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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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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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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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Classifying 3D Shapes Sorting Activity
Play this sorting game when learning how to classify 3D shapes according to their properties.
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I Can Be Cooperative Sort
Practice personal and social skills to cooperate and interact respectfully with others with an engaging sorting activity.
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Is It Cooperative? Social Skills Activity
Explore the difference between cooperative and non-cooperative behavior with a sorting activity.
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Producer, Consumer and Decomposer - Sorting Activity
Explore the roles and relationships of producers, consumers and decomposers in food chains with this hands-on sorting activity.
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Weathering, Erosion, and Deposition – Sorting Activity
Categorize examples of deposition, weathering, and erosion with this 24-card sorting activity.
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Making Mistakes – Sorting Activity
Help your students recognize different types of mistakes and discuss ways to learn from them with this SEL activity.
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Place Value Cacti - 3-Digit Expanded Form Activity
A fun place value activity for students to play in the classroom when exploring 3-digit numbers and expanded forms.
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Famous Colonists Cut and Paste Worksheet
Show what you know about famous American colonists with a cut-and-paste Colonial Americans worksheet.
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Spring Short and Long Vowel Sort
Practice distinguishing short and long vowels with a Spring-themed short and long vowel 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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Types of Taxes – Sorting Activity
Differentiate between different types of taxes with this 24-card sorting activity.
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Communication in the Past and Present- Sorting Activity
A fun sorting activity for students to identify old and new communication devices.
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Spring Syllables - Syllable Sort
Save the baby birds by clapping and counting syllables in words with this Spring syllable sorting activity.
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Beginning Sound Sort - Apple Edition
Fall into letter-sound correspondence with this apple-themed letter/sound match-up center activity.
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Water Cycle Sort – Sorting Activity
Use knowledge of the steps in the water cycle to categorize examples with this sorting activity.
- Free Plan
Fall Math Center - Odd and Even Number Sort
Identify and sort 2- and 3-digit numbers into odd and even categories with a Fall math activity.
- Plus Plan
How to Be a Good Citizen - Sorting Center
Grow a new batch of good citizens with a citizenship sorting activity.