Free Shape and Color Sorting Activity for Kids

We have created this wonderful selection and matching activity for young children in the early childhood development stage. It is also a very valuable activity that allows children to recognize colors and shapes. Moreover, introducing shapes and colors to young children at this stage is part of their curriculum. So, it helps children learn about the outside world and introduces basic math concepts. Therefore, our activity aims to create learning opportunities for children and develop their skills. Then try this fun Shape and Color Sorting activity with your kids.

You can get the templates and instructions for this activity for free on this blog page. Also, this is a very easy activity that any child of any age can do on their own. However, it is best suited for preschool or kindergarten children. Here is a fun activity that can be done with a few different basic 2D shapes. So, let’s explore more below.

Why Shape and Color Sorting is Important:

Introducing shapes and colors is essential at an early stage of development. Therefore, teachers create various activities and lesson worksheets to introduce them to children. The goal of all this is to help children learn to recognize and name different colors and shapes. So why is it important to introduce so many shapes and colors? Let’s find out.

• Improves Recognition – Teachers introduce basic and primary shapes and colors to children in early childhood. Therefore, it is very important to train them to distinguish and correctly identify those basic shapes and colors.

• Enhances Fine Motor Skills – Various activities are designed for preschoolers to help them identify colors and shapes. There are many subtle activities that children need to do in those activities. Cutting, pasting, selecting, and coloring are some of such activities. So with these activities, we can help children develop their fine motor skills.

• Encourages Problem-Solving – Recognizing different shapes and colors is a big challenge for children. Recognizing and matching them is also a problem for them. By planning activities like this, we can help children find answers to these problems. So what happens is that their problem-solving abilities improve.

What is this shape and color sorting activity?

This activity is very simple and easy for children of any age to do. It is also a home activity that can be done with very few materials. This activity is also designed to introduce shapes and colors to children. Here are 10 basic shapes that you can introduce to your children. They are circle, triangle, square, rectangle, heart shape, oval shape, star shape, pentagon, hexagon, and crescent. So, you can choose the shapes that are appropriate for your child’s age from these.

We have provided you with 10 pages for the above 10 shapes on this blog page. On each page, you can see 3 of each shape and 3 long vertical straight lines below them. Also, each page here is available in black and white on an A4 page.

So now let’s see how you should do this activity. To do so, follow the steps below in order.

Materials Needed:

To do this shape and color sorting activity, you need:

• Free printable templates (Download the PDF from this page)
• Colored paper (red, blue, yellow, green, etc.)
• Scissors (kid-friendly)
• Glue stick
• Markers or crayons (optional for decorating)

Make sure to supervise young children while using scissors.

How to Do the Shape and Color Sorting Activity

Step 1: Download and Print the Template

The first thing you need to do is download the templates that we have provided for you from this blog page. Then, you can use our PDF file for better quality. Also, you can use white A4-size printing paper to download those templates.

Step 2: Cut Out the Shapes

After downloading the templates, before distributing them to the children, you need to prepare for the activity. All you have to do is cut out the shapes using colored paper. Cut out shapes of the appropriate size to stick on the template. Choose a size that is easy to stick, clearly visible, and separate from each other based on the quantity of the shapes you want. Also, don’t forget to decide on a size that is easy for children to stick and handle. When cutting these shapes, you need to be careful about the quantity you cut and the color you use.

First, let’s assume you are cutting a circle. Here, you need to use three colors to cut the circle. Let’s assume we used three colors, red, green, and blue. Now, you need to cut three or four circles in that color. That means you need to cut out a total of 9 circles: three red circles, three green circles, and three blue circles. Similarly, for the other shapes, cut out shapes in three colors and the same quantity in each of those three colors.

Step 3: Distribute the template pages

Now distribute the pages with the shapes you printed among the children in your class. You can do this activity in any way you like.

• You can divide the children into groups and let each group do the activity with one or two types of shapes.
• Let them do the activity with one shape per week or day.
• You can put all the shapes together and make a book and distribute it to the children.

So distribute these pages among the children using any of the methods given here.

Step 4: Color the shapes on the template.

Now we need to instruct the children to color the shapes in the templates provided. Remember the colors of the shapes you cut out earlier. You need to let the children color this template with the same colors.

For example, let’s say you give children a template with a circle shape. Then you cut out circles in three different colors, right? Now, let them color the three circles on the template in those three colors. color one circle in each color. Then, the children will have three circles of three colors. Do this for the other shapes as well.

Step 5: Sort the Shapes by Color and Type

Now it’s time to do the activity. First, give them the colorful shapes that you cut out. Give them shapes that match the shape of the template they have. If they have circle templates, give them the circle shapes that you cut out in three colors. Then, instruct them to paste the circles by matching them by color. Here, children have to find and paste the shapes with the color you have given under the colorful shapes.

So, if you give several shape templates at once, children will have the opportunity to paste the circles not only by color but also by type.

Step 6: Paste the Shapes onto the Template

Now, apply glue, paste the shapes selected by type and color along the corresponding strip of the template.

More Ways to Use This Activity:

Looking for extra ways to extend the learning? Try these ideas:

• Use different materials – Instead of paper, cut out foam shapes or use felt.
• Make a sorting box – Place different colored baskets and let kids drop shapes into the correct box.
• Play a matching game – Mix up the shapes and ask kids to find matching pairs.
• Turn it into a puzzle – Cut the template into sections and let kids reassemble the correct shape positions.

These variations keep learning fresh and fun for kids!

Download Your Free Shape and Color Sorting PDF

You can download the free printable activity templates from this page. Print them at home or in class, and let the fun begin!

🖨 Click here to get your free PDF! 🖨

Encourage kids to explore, create, and learn through hands-on play. This shape and color sorting activity is a fantastic way to introduce early math concepts simply and engagingly.

Let’s make learning fun and colorful!