Math Learning Plan: Sorting
Read or listen to a story together called, “The Animals Would Not Sleep” by Sara Levine. Then, have the child gather their own stuffed animals and toys. Have the child compare the differences in the toys to sort them into categories. Count the number of toys in each category, and then try to sort the toys in a different way.
Families, check out this video for a tutorial on this learning plan.
Materials:
Assorted stuffed animals or toys
Optional: baskets or containers for the toys
Start the activity by reading a story together about math. Recommended reading, “The Animals Would Not Sleep” by Sara Levine which can be borrowed from a local library or purchased here. Or, families can play this read aloud video for free online here. During the story, talk about the different ways that Marco sorts his toys, such as when he sorts them by color, size, and ability. Pause while reading and ask your child to identify the different attributes. For example, you can ask them to point to which animals are the small animals, and which are the large animals. You can also count the different animals on the page by their groups. To help your child develop skills related to retelling stories, you can ask questions while reading the story such as:
What do you predict will happen next?
Wait, who was that person?
What’s happening on this page?
Which categories did Marco try? Why didn’t the animals like that?
After the story, talk to your child about how they are going to sort their stuffed animals and toys just like Marco! If you have baskets or containers that you like to use for organizing toys, you can bring those out too. Encourage your child to think of different characteristics that their toys have. Children naturally notice attributes such as color, size, length, type, and shape. Start with having your child sort their toys based on one attribute. Help your child to count the number of toys in each set. You can talk about which group has the most toys and which group has the least. For example, “The small toy group has 5 toys, and the large toy group has 8 toys. We have more large toys than small toys!” After they finish with their first sorting rule, ask them, “What would be another way to sort your toys?” If children need some help coming up with additional categories, ask them to describe some of their toys with three words. Maybe some of their stuffed animals have their own personalities, and you could have your child sort the stuffed animals by the ones that are shy versus outgoing.
At the end of the activity, talk to your child about the different ways you compared the toys. Reinforce that your child can sort objects! You can support students in communicating what they learned by making connections between what you read about in the story and the observations you are making in the activity. If children need additional support, grown-ups can model counting and ask questions to identify different attributes to sort the toys by. To add a challenge, ask children to sort the toys based on two attributes instead of only one attribute. For example, after they sort small toys from large toys, they can sort small red toys and small blue toys.
Through further practice, children can continue to sort objects in daily routines. For example, you can encourage children to help you sort laundry by different categories, colors, or by person. Grown-ups can ask their children things like, “How many shirts are there? How about how many pants? Do we have more shirts or more pants?” or “What other ways could we sort these clothes?”
You can extend the lesson by asking children to sort an area of your home that needs organizing. For example, they could sort miscellaneous items in a junk drawer, sort silverware as they take it out of the dishwasher or drying rack, or organize tupperware lids and containers. Emphasize words about the different attributes they sort by, and express gratitude that they are being helpful for your family.
Learning Standards
Goal P-MATH 1. Child knows number names and the count sequence.
Goal P-MATH 2. Child recognizes the number of objects in a small set.
Goal P-MATH 3. Child understands the relationship between numbers and quantities.
Goal P-MATH 4. Child compares numbers.
Goal P-MATH 8. Child measures objects by their various attributes using standard and non-standard measurement. Uses differences in attributes to make comparisons.
Goal P-MATH 9. Child identifies, describes, compares, and composes shapes.
Download the full Math Learning Plan here.
