Teaching Tip: Sort, Sort, Sort!
5 Things To Consider about SORTING
Ok... we know all little ones love to sort. It seems like such a natural process that we forget sometimes it is important to expand these experiences to include multiple sorts of the same materials. You may want to consider these ideas next time you see your little ones sorting.
1. It is important that your little ones spend a lot of time with exact match! Yes, exact match involves a lot of observation, conversation and internal language about similarities and differences. You may want to use this phrase when interacting with the children, "Find my match".
2. Next, move on to sorting by only one attribute so that you pull a smaller set away from the whole. You may want to say, "What's my rule".
3. Now you are ready to use one attribute to change a collection into two sets using a yes/no rule so that the entire whole set is sorted. You may want to say, "If you are wearing blue stand here, if you are not wearing blue then stand here".
4. Sorting everyday items like bottle caps can be a much richer experience than "plastic buttons". Items used in everyday life have an infinite amount of variation so the opportunities for similarities and differences are much more open and provide an endless loop for conversation.
5. Sorting natural items such as rocks, leaves, or multiple items from a nature walk can increase the amount of language used to describe the attributes and become a great family activity.
For more information on sorting you may want to go check out this link: https://earlymath.erikson.edu/big-ideas/attributes-can-be-used-to-sort-collections-into-sets-learning-basic-math-isnt-basic/