Make probability feel playful and purposeful with our LADYBUG CHANCE SORTING WORKSHEET – a visually engaging resource that supports young learners as they explore the language of chance through colour and creativity. This worksheet invites students to apply their understanding of key probability terms such as “certain,” “likely,” “unlikely,” and “impossible” by colouring ladybugs inside jars to match different chance-based scenarios. It’s the perfect blend of visual reasoning and hands-on learning, ideal for Foundation to Year 2 classrooms.

This activity provides a simple, structured way to practise probability vocabulary in a context that’s easy to understand and fun to complete. Students are asked to interpret given prompts (e.g. “Make it likely to get a red ladybug”) and then colour the ladybugs accordingly within jars. By adjusting the number and colour of ladybugs, students explore how quantities and ratios affect likelihood – a foundational concept in early data and chance learning.

The LADYBUG CHANCE SORTING WORKSHEET is ideal for introducing, consolidating or assessing student understanding of chance language. It encourages visual analysis, logical thinking and decision-making, while also building confidence with new vocabulary. Whether used as an independent worksheet, small group task or guided activity, this resource offers meaningful practice that goes beyond simple definitions – encouraging students to demonstrate understanding through creative choices.

Key Learning Outcomes:

• ✅ Apply chance vocabulary including “certain,” “likely,” “unlikely” and “impossible”
• ✅ Understand how different quantities affect the likelihood of outcomes
• ✅ Use visual reasoning to represent probability concepts
• ✅ Strengthen mathematical vocabulary and justification skills
• ✅ Practise fine motor skills through purposeful colouring tasks

What’s Included:

• Ladybug jar worksheet with labelled outcome prompts (e.g. certain, unlikely)
• Simple layout with clear jars and space for students to colour ladybugs
• Teacher instructions and suggested sentence stems for classroom discussion

Materials Needed:

• Printed worksheets
• Coloured pencils, crayons or markers
• Optional: scissors and glue for sorting or portfolio tasks

How to Use:

1. Introduce students to the chance vocabulary and provide classroom examples of each term.
2. Distribute the worksheet and review the instructions as a class.
3. Guide students to colour the ladybugs inside each jar to represent the described outcome (e.g. one colour for “certain” and varied colours for “unlikely”).
4. Encourage students to explain their reasoning orally or in writing using key language.
5. Use completed worksheets as formative assessment or discussion starters.

Ideas for Classroom Use:

• 💡 Use as a follow-up task after reading a story or playing a chance-based game
• 💡 Pair students to discuss and compare their coloured jars
• 💡 Add to your maths rotations during your chance and data unit
• 💡 Project the worksheet on a screen and model possible outcomes before independent work
• 💡 Extend learning by having students create their own jar and write their own probability prompt

Teacher Tips:

• 💛 Pre-colour example jars to model the difference between likely and certain events
• 💛 Display the completed jars on a class wall as a reference for probability terms
• 💛 Encourage full-sentence responses: “It is likely to get a red ladybug because there are more red than any other colour.”
• 💛 Use as a quick-check assessment to identify student understanding of vocabulary
• 💛 Offer blank versions for early finishers to create their own outcome scenarios

LADYBUG CHANCE SORTING WORKSHEET turns colourful decision-making into mathematical thinking – helping students visualise probability and use chance language with confidence!