Classification and Sorting Lesson Plans

A Couch or a Potato - Students classify objects/organisms seen on the Wakulla Springs icam website as living or nonliving.
Alien Behaviors - Students work in cooperative groups to list and classify which human characteristics are learned and which are inherited. Each student then writes a letter identifying and explaining learned and inherited human characteristics.
Book Sorting: Using Observation and Comprehension to Categorize Books - This sorting activity addresses critical-thinking skills, observation and categorization processes, and reading comprehension and writing skills, while at the same time providing teachers with a vast array of diagnostics through observation of student interaction and conversation.
Animals Galore - Students classify and sort animals into groups according to the structural characteristics.
Animals That Fly or Do Not Fly - Children classify animals according to if they can or cannot fly.
Applemania - Students will practice using the mathematical concepts of sorting, patterns, classifying, counting, and recording by participating in an authentic classroom survey and experiment.
Bean Sort - Students create dichotomous keys, classify items, and practice writing scientific names.
Bears Odd Bears Even - Students use counters and cubes to classify and model numbers as even or odd.

Button Bonanza - This is a small group activity in which students sort, classify, and write about how they sort buttons.
Cars, Trucks, and Things that Go Sorting Fun! - This is a small group activity in which students have fun sorting, classifying and writing about how they sort transportation vehicles.
Class-I-fy - Students classify pre-selected art class items to see how classification methods are created and used. This activity gives students a greater understanding of why and how classification methods are used in science. The scientific method of categorizing is revealed in this lesson.
Classifying and Constructing Corners - Students explore, classify, and define the various types of angles (acute, right, obtuse, and straight) that occur in the world around them. This lesson plan is the second lesson in a series on geometry.
Classification and Sorting Teaching Theme
Crazy Classifications - This classification idea provides ESE students with some much needed practice to show knowledge of characteristics of vertebrate groups. They cutout pictures of animals and identify which grouping that animal belongs in.
Doing Dewey - Doing Dewey reinforces the Dewey Decimal Classification System. Students will apply their basic understanding of Dewey decimal classification to the process of book organization.
Fish Eyes Sort - This is a small group instructional lesson in which students sort, classify and write about what characteristics they used to sort fish counters.
Going Crackers - In this lesson the students will sort and classify by shapes four kinds of crackers.
Geo Jammin' - Day 2, Lesson 4: Sing a Song of Shapes - Students learn five songs to define and develop understanding of the attributes of two- and three-dimensional figures and the meaning of mathematical terms. Through use of the attribute songs, students classify objects as either two- or three-dimensional.
Geo Jammin' By DeSign - Day 7, Lesson 34: Flying Geese - The Flying Geese quilt pattern is used as a graphic organizer for classifying learned concepts. Using student-generated ideas, the teacher models use of the design for organizing knowledge and writing recorded ideas into paragraphs for a report.
GUM: More, Less, or the Same? - A laboratory activity confirming the law of conservation of matter by weighing chewing gum before and after it is chewed. Will it weigh more, less or the same? What happens to the matter?'
Gummy Bear Sorting - Students demonstrate knowledge of sorting and classifying by color as they sort gummy bear candies.
Harriet's Halloween Sort - This is a small group instructional activity in which students sort, classify and tell about what characteristics they sort individually wrapped candy.
Identifying and Classifying Verbs in Context - Verbs are the glue that holds sentences together; without verbs, there can be no action in a sentence.
Introduction to Classification - Classification is a systematic method used to diversify, categorize and organize animate and inanimate objects. Students explore these relationships by designing a classification system.
Is it Too Broad? - Students play a class game to learn to identify and classify levels of specificity among words.
Life and Death - This is a great interactive game students can play to review how living things are classified. This lesson and assessment should be used after the GLE (SC.G.1.2.5.3.2) has been introduced.
Mitten Magic - This is a small group activity in which students sort, classify and write about how they sorted the mittens.
Name That Tune - Students listen to music that is representative of different styles, periods, cultures, composers, and performers and identify the music using as least two areas of classification.
Pattern People - The student will describe a wide variety of classification schemes and patterns related to physical characteristics and sensory attributes of people and will recognize, extend and create a wide variety of those patterns and relations.
Physical Difference and Classification - The students compare and contrast several physical properties and develop a classification system using observation skills and a microscope.
Sorting and Classifying Worksheets
Squares to Compare - In this lesson the students learn how to draw and classify two and three dimensional figures (squares, triangles, rectangles.)
University Sort! - This is a small group activity in which students sort and classify Gator and Seminole pasta by a variety of characteristics.
We're Alike, We're Different! - This is a small group activity in which students compare a variety of people counters to determine how they're alike and different and then sort, classify and write about how they sort and classify people counters.
What�s My Rule for Sorting? - Students build on prior knowledge of sorting and classifying when they recognize sorts and name rules for sorting. They identify common properties in the classroom environment and make, explain, and defend conjectures to extend their knowledge.
What's the Texture - This is a small group activity in which students sort, classify, and write about how they sort a variety of shells.