Sorting

All around the classroom, students have the opportunity to sort and organize materials and learning tools in various ways. Students require sorting skills in order to classify, organize and group various objects according to their given attributes. Whether putting blocks away appropriately in the block centre or tidying up markers and crayons at the art table, sorting plays a significant role in our everyday learning in Kindergarten.

After reading the book 'The Button Box', students were presented with a classroom 'button box'. Inside are hundreds of buttons in various sizes, shapes and colours. Some buttons have four holes while others have only two holes or perhaps only a button shank. Intrigued by the endless variety of buttons found inside the box, students sort the contents of the box in many different ways. 

To further practice sorting skills at home, children might help by sorting and pairing socks when folding clean laundry. They can also put silverware away after doing the supper dishes or organize toys in their bedroom. These types of experiences at home enable students to make purposeful connections between what they are learning at school and how that learning transfers over into their daily lives.