📁 How to create a Group Sort activity

The Group Sort template is a classic categorisation tool. Unlike the "Categorise" template, which is open-ended, Group Sort is a graded activity where the system knows which item belongs in which group. It’s perfect for testing a student's ability to classify information correctly.

IN THIS ARTICLE:

• How is the Group Sort activity played?
• How and what do you type into Edit content for Group Sort?
• Where can I find some more examples?

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How the activity is played

The game displays several group containers at the top and a pile of unsorted items at the bottom.

• The Interaction: The user drags each item and drops it into the correct group heading.

• The Feedback: Each item is marked as correct or incorrect. If an item is dropped into the wrong group, it is kicked back out or marked, depending on your settings.

• The Goal: Successfully sort all items into their designated groups as quickly as possible.

• The Result: On the final screen, students can review their placements and submit their scores to the Leader board.

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Creating your Group Sort activity

1. Click Create Activity and choose Group Sort.

   

   
    

2. Set Up Your Groups:

   • Type the name for your first group heading (e.g., "Mammals").

   • Click Add a group to create additional categories (e.g., "Reptiles", "Birds").

3. Add Your Items:

   • Under each group heading, type the items that belong there.

   • You can add an image to any item to make it a visual sorting task.

   • Click Add an item or press Enter to keep listing items for that specific group.

4.  Click Done to save your activity.

   
    

5. Scroll down to Visual style to add a creative style to your activity, or tailor the difficulty in the Options panel below the activity:

   

   • Timer:

     • None: No time limit is enforced, allowing students to drag and categorise items completely at their own pace without clock pressure.

     • Count up: Displays a stopwatch that tracks exactly how long it takes for a student to sort all items into their respective groups.

     • Count down: Sets a strict time limit (e.g., 5 minutes). The activity ends automatically when the countdown clock hits zero.

   • Layout:

     • Grouped: Organises the target sorting categories into distinct, isolated sections or boxes across the play area.

     • Table: Arranges the categories side-by-side in a structured column format, resembling a traditional sorting chart.

   • Random:

     • Different layout each play: Randomises the placement sequence of the groups and the distribution order of items every time the activity is launched.

     • Always the same layout: Locks the visual design and sorting order into a fixed position so it builds consistent structural familiarity each time a student repeats the game.

   • End of game:

     • Show answers: If checked, this gives students an opportunity to review the correctly sorted items and check for errors at the conclusion of the session (unchecked/disabled in the screenshot).

   • Saving options:

     • Apply to this activity: Saves these specific choices only for the activity you are currently editing.

     • More: Click this drop-down to find:

       • Set as default for template: Saves these settings as your "go-to" configuration for every future activity you create using the Group sort template.

       • Revert to default: Clears custom changes and returns the panel to your previously saved personal defaults.

       • Revert to author's setting: Restores the layout parameters back to the original configuration chosen by the community creator.

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Creating Group Sort with AI

You don't need to be a prompt expert to use our AI. It is designed to be intuitive and accessible directly from the activity creator.

1. Click Create Activity and select Group Sort.

   

   

2. Look for the ✨ Generate with AI button (magic wand icon) at the top right of the content editor.

   
    

3. Enter your content:

   • Topic: Type a subject like "Solid, Liquid, Gas" or "Nouns vs. Verbs."

   • Text / Notes: Paste a summary or lesson notes. The AI will analyse the text, establish distinct categories, and extract relevant sorting items for each group.

   • File: Upload a PDF or Word doc. Wordwall AI will scan the text and automatically break your material down into clean, interactive classification categories.

4. Click Generate. The AI will populate the tables with correct groups and items. Review the classifications for accuracy, make any manual tweaks, and hit Done.

   

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Need Inspirations?

Some examples of Group Sort activities have been created by our users and shared with the Wordwall resource community.