The Colourful Caterpillar: Sorting & Classifying Worksheet is a vibrant and engaging activity designed to help young learners develop key foundational skills in colour recognition, categorisation and early critical thinking. This hands-on worksheet invites students to sort a range of everyday objects by colour, promoting observation, reasoning and fine motor coordination along the way.

Perfect for early childhood and Foundation settings, this task allows students to explore how we classify objects in the world around us based on visual features such as colour. The cut-and-paste format supports kinaesthetic learners and gives children the opportunity to engage in tactile, purposeful learning. Each object on the page can be interpreted and coloured differently, providing room for creativity and personal choice in how students complete the task.

Students begin by examining and colouring each object, deciding what colour it would be in real life—or using their imagination. Once coloured, the images are cut out and sorted into the matching colour categories on the caterpillar worksheet. Each colour space can hold up to six objects, giving students flexibility and prompting discussion about which colours might belong in multiple categories.

Key Learning Outcomes:

• ✅ Recognise and name common colours
• ✅ Sort and classify objects based on shared attributes
• ✅ Develop fine motor skills through colouring, cutting and pasting
• ✅ Promote flexible thinking and creative interpretation

What’s Included:

• 1 printable worksheet with objects to colour, cut and sort
• 1 Colourful Caterpillar sorting template for categorising items by colour

Materials Needed:

• Printed worksheet pages (A4 or A3 as needed)
• Coloured pencils or crayons
• Scissors and glue

How to Use:

• Introduce or review basic colours with your class using real-life objects or visuals.
• Guide students to colour each object on the worksheet based on how they appear in real life—or using imaginative choices.
• Have students cut out the objects and sort them by colour, gluing them onto the corresponding sections of the caterpillar.
• Encourage students to say each colour aloud and explain why they placed each object in its chosen spot.

Ideas for Classroom Use:

• 💡 Use during a colour unit in early years or Foundation classrooms
• 💡 Add to fine motor rotations or independent workstations
• 💡 Implement as a pre-assessment or review of sorting and classifying skills
• 💡 Display completed caterpillars as part of a themed classroom wall

Top Teacher Tips:

• 💛 Enlarge the resource to A3 for younger students or those needing extra space
• 💛 Encourage verbal explanation throughout to build colour vocabulary and reasoning
• 💛 Use real classroom objects to extend the task and connect sorting to the environment
• 💛 Try our Colour Caterpillar Sorting & Classifying Activity for a crafty version of this concept

The Colourful Caterpillar: Sorting & Classifying Worksheet blends creativity, colour recognition and early problem-solving into one simple yet highly effective activity. It’s the perfect addition to your early years measurement or sorting lessons—and guaranteed to brighten up your classroom!