Baby Wipe Top Color Sort: An Exciting Sorting Activity for Toddlers

Turn Trash into Learning

Got a pile of empty baby wipe lids and a toddler who loves to dump and sort? Perfect. Today, we’re turning those plastic lids into a hands-on, mess-free activity that builds color recognition, sorting skills, and fine motor control.

This is Baby Wipe Top Color Sort—Activity #2 in my Activities with Random Household Objects series, where we prove that the best kids activities don’t require a Pinterest-worthy craft room or an Amazon order. Just everyday stuff and a little creativity.

Why Baby Wipe Tops?

If you’re already drowning in baby wipe lids, why not put them to work? They make a satisfying click when opened, they’re sturdy, and they’re already designed for tiny hands to flip and close. Plus, if your toddler is anything like mine, they’ll love the thrill of stuffing pompoms into a hole and hearing them plop into the box.

What Your Toddler Will Learn

• Color Recognition – Matching colored pompoms to the lids helps kids learn and reinforce color names.
• Sorting Activities – Separating by color builds early categorization skills, which are essential for math and problem-solving.
• Fine Motor Activity – Picking up and pushing pompoms through small holes strengthens hand-eye coordination and finger dexterity.
• Cause and Effect – Dropping a pompom and watching it disappear keeps toddlers engaged and curious.

Setting up the activity

What You Need

• 8 baby wipe tops
• A sturdy cardboard box
• Glue (hot glue or strong craft glue)
• 6 small pieces of construction paper (red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and purple)
• Xacto knife
• A marker (optional for labeling)
• A bin of assorted pompoms in matching colors

How to Make Your Baby Wipe Top Color Sort Activity

1. Prepare the Box – Choose a sturdy cardboard box. A diaper box or a medium shipping box works great.
2. Attach the Lids – Glue each baby wipe top to the box in a grid pattern, spacing them out so there’s room for little hands to reach.
3. Add the Color Labels – Cut small squares of construction paper and tape (or glue) them to the tops of each lid. Each lid should have its own color (red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and purple).
4. Cut the Sorting Holes – Beneath each lid, cut a hole big enough for pompoms to fit through but small enough to provide a bit of resistance (this helps with fine motor practice!).
5. Gather the Pompoms – Fill a small bin with an assortment of colored pompoms that match the colors of your baby wipe tops.

How to Play

1. Show your child how to open a lid, find the matching pompom, and push it through the hole.
2. Let them explore on their own, matching and sorting as they go.
3. When the pompoms are all sorted, open the lids to “check” the work and dump them out to start again.
4. Make it a game by setting a timer and seeing how many they can sort in one minute.

Ways to Switch It Up

• Tweezer Challenge – Give them kid-friendly tweezers to pick up the pompoms for an extra fine motor challenge.
• Mystery Sorting – Close the lids and have your toddler guess where each color is based on memory.
• Sensory Add-On – Fill the inside of the box with rice or dry beans for a fun texture surprise when pompoms drop in.
• Pattern Play – Encourage your toddler to create a pattern (red, blue, red, blue) while sorting.

MORE ACTIVITIES USING BABY WIPE TOPS

If you enjoyed this activity using baby wipe tops, be sure to check out these other fun and engaging ideas!

1. Baby Wipe Top Count & Drop: Glue 9 baby wipe tops to the bottom of a cardboard box, label them 1 through 9, and create matching holes in the lid. Push cotton swabs into the holes to represent each number, helping your child practice counting and fine motor skills.
2. Baby Wipe Top Letter Find & Drop: Write letters of the alphabet on bottle caps, glue a baby wipe top to the bottom of a cardboard box, and cut a slit for the bottle caps to fit. Using letter flashcards, your child can match and drop the correct letter bottle cap into the box.
3. Baby Wipe Top Rice Bin Scoop & Dump: Glue a baby wipe top to a cardboard box, add a rice bin, and provide scoops and cups. Let your child explore the textures of rice and practice their scooping and dumping skills by pushing rice through the baby wipe top.
4. Baby Wipe Top Scarf Pull: Glue a baby wipe top to the bottom of a cardboard box and cut an opening underneath. Fill the box with colorful scarves and let your child pull them through the top, enhancing their hand-eye coordination and sensory exploration.

Each of these activities will turn simple baby wipe tops box into a fun and educational tool using materials you likely already have at home!

Why This Activity Works for Parents & More Baby Wipe Top Fun

This activity is a win for parents! It’s simple, quiet, and keeps toddlers engaged long enough for you to tackle small tasks like unloading the dishwasher or enjoying a warm cup of coffee. Plus, it’s a creative way to repurpose baby wipe lids before they head to the recycling bin. This is just the second activity in my series, so stay tuned for more fun and easy ways to turn baby wipe tops into engaging learning tools for your little ones. After all, the best activities are the ones you actually have time to do!

Pom-poms

Construction Paper

Xacto Knife