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Sort into groups: how to write one

A1–B2Updated Live examples

A sorting task gives students a pile of items and two or three labelled groups. It is the right shape whenever the lesson is a pattern rather than a rule: which verbs are irregular, which nouns are countable, which -ed endings sound the same.

Also called

The same task goes by several names: categorise, word sort, grouping activity, put into categories. They all describe the exercise below, and this page uses sort into groups throughout.

What one item is made of

The categories
Two or three, named in the students' own terms. Four groups is usually two exercises.
The items
Words or short phrases. Enough per group that the pattern shows — four each is the minimum.
The borderline case
One item that could plausibly go either way. Where the discussion happens, and where the learning is.

When to use it

Works well at A1–B2. Reach for it when:

  • The point is a pattern students must notice for themselves.
  • You are teaching a distinction with no clean rule: countable and uncountable, make and do, -ed pronunciation.
  • You want pair discussion. Sorting is the one exercise type students argue about productively.

Choose something else when:

  • There is a rule that just needs stating. Sorting invents a discovery where there is nothing to discover.
  • Every item is obvious. A sort with no borderline case is a labelling exercise.

How to write a sort into groups exercise

  1. Step 1:

    Name the groups in student language

    Regular (-ed) and Irregular beats Weak and strong verbs. The label is part of what they take away.

  2. Step 2:

    Balance the piles

    Roughly equal numbers. An eight-two split is solved by counting rather than thinking.

  3. Step 3:

    Plant one hard item

    hair in countable and uncountable, read in the -ed pronunciation sort. Plan what you will say when it comes up.

  4. Step 4:

    Let them sort before you explain

    The rule lands better as an answer to a disagreement they have already had.

  5. Step 5:

    Finish with the odd ones

    Review only the items that split the class. The obvious ones need no air time.

Mistakes teachers make

  • Not thisGroups: Count nouns / Mass nouns

    BetterGroups: You can count them / You cannot count them

    Metalanguage in the group label adds a second thing to learn before the exercise starts.

  • Not thisNine regular verbs, two irregular

    BetterFive regular, five irregular

    An unbalanced sort is solved by putting everything in the big group and guessing the rest.

  • Not thisItems: cat, dog, bird, water, milk, air

    BetterItems: cat, hair, advice, coin, furniture, tip

    If every item is obvious, nobody has to think. One genuinely arguable item makes the exercise.

Try it: sort into groups examples

Real items, not screenshots. Answers are checked in your browser and never sent to us, so you can share this page with a class exactly as it is.

Two sorts. Put each word in a group, then check.

1Sort these past forms into the right group.

      6 to go

      2Can you count it?

          6 to go

          Variations worth knowing

          Pronunciation sort
          Group -ed endings by sound: /t/, /d/, /ɪd/. The clearest way to teach an ending students cannot hear.
          Three groups, one empty
          Add a group that ends up with nothing in it, and ask why. Good for spotting false assumptions.
          Sort then rank
          After sorting, ask pairs to order one group by difficulty or frequency. Same items, second pass, more thinking.

          Grammar topics that suit this task

          Where it appears in the Cambridge levels

          Pick Two Activity is independent and not affiliated with Cambridge University Press & Assessment. These pages describe the level you are teaching towards; always check the official site for the current format.

          Frequently asked questions

          How many categories should I use?

          Two, or three at most. Four groups means students hold four rules in mind at once, and the exercise becomes about memory rather than the distinction you are teaching.

          Should I explain the rule first?

          Usually not. Let them sort, disagree, and then give the rule as the resolution — it lands harder when it answers a question they already have.

          What makes a good sorting item?

          One that is not obvious. If every word falls into place without thought, the class has practised nothing.