Red Leaf, Yellow Leaf Sorting Activity

This Red Leaf, Yellow Leaf sorting activity is a great, hands-on way for young children to practice this early math skill. It’s perfect for fall!

This simple fall math activity can be done with only red leaves and yellow leaves or add other colors like orange, brown, and green too. It is self-correcting so it would be a fantastic choice for a math center.

Red Leaf, Yellow Leaf Sorting Activity

Supplies Needed

• Red Leaf, Yellow Leaf by Lois Ehlert
• Fall leaves (real or artificial)
• Brown construction paper
• White construction paper
• Dot stickers that match the leaf colors used (or use a construction paper circle instead)

Setting Up the Activity
Draw a tree with no leaves on brown construction paper and cut it out.

Glue the tree to a white piece of construction paper.

Place a dot sticker or construction paper circle on the tree trunk.

Gather leaves that match each sorting tree you have made and put them all together in a pile.

If you would like to use this in a math center, I would recommend laminating the tree or placing it in a dry-erase sleeve for durability.

Red Leaf, Yellow Leaf Sorting Activity

Place the trees on a table or the floor and put the pile of leaves nearby. Invite your students to pick up leaves and sort them to the corresponding tree for each color.

This is a great way practice color recognition and sorting into groups. Afterward, students can count the leaves on each tree or compare the amount of leaves on each tree.

Here are some additional questions to ask:

• Which tree has the most leaves?
• Which tree has the least leaves?
• Do any of the trees have the same amount of leaves? Let’s count and see.
• How many leaves are on the ____ tree?
• Which color is your favorite?

Students can even vote on their favorite fall colors and you can graph the class results. Or you can count the leaves on each tree and graph the results with the class.

This leaf sorting activity is sure to be a hit this fall!

BIO: Danielle is a former elementary teacher, a mom of two and now shares playful learning activities at Mom Inspired Life. Check out her Alphabet Activities for Preschoolers and make sure you subscribe to her newsletter to receive activities straight to your inbox! You can also follow her on Facebook, Pinterest, or Instagram.

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