Patterns: number patterns and simple rules – Week 6 focus
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Subject: Mathematics
Class: Grade 1
Term: 2nd Term
Week: 6
Theme: General lesson support
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Patterns are all around us! From the colourful beadwork we see at markets to the way houses are arranged in a street, patterns help us understand and predict what comes next. In mathematics, number patterns are sequences of numbers that follow a certain rule. Learning about patterns helps us develop our problem-solving skills, improve our counting skills, and see the order in the world around us. Understanding number patterns is also important for future math skills, like addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division. Think about how useful this is when sharing sweets equally with your friends! If you understand patterns, you know how to count up!
What is a Number Pattern? A number pattern is a list of numbers that follow a specific order or rule. This rule tells us how to get from one number in the pattern to the next.
Types of Patterns: Increasing Patterns: These patterns get bigger. They usually involve adding (counting on).
Examples: 2, 4, 6, 8… (adding 2 each time); 10, 20, 30, 40… (adding 10 each time).
Decreasing Patterns: These patterns get smaller. They usually involve subtracting (counting back).
Examples: 10, 9, 8, 7… (subtracting 1 each time); 50, 40, 30, 20… (subtracting 10 each time).
Rules of Patterns: The rule tells us what to do to each number to get the next number.
The rule might be: "Add 1", "Subtract 2", "Add 10", or even "Subtract 5". Finding the rule is like being a detective solving a mystery!
Examples: Example 1: Increasing pattern Pattern: 3, 4, 5, 6, __, __ Step 1: Look at the numbers. Are they getting bigger or smaller? In this case, they are getting bigger. This is an increasing pattern.
Step 2: Figure out the rule. What do we add to 3 to get 4? We add
1. Does adding 1 work for the other numbers? 4 + 1 = 5, 5 + 1 =
6. Yes, it does!
Step 3: State the rule. The rule is "Add 1".
Step 4: Continue the pattern using the rule. 6 + 1 = 7, 7 + 1 =
8. Step 5: Complete the pattern: 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 Example 2: Decreasing pattern Pattern: 20, 18, 16, 14, __, __ Step 1: Look at the numbers. Are they getting bigger or smaller? They are getting smaller. This is a decreasing pattern.
Step 2: Figure out the rule. What do we subtract from 20 to get 18? We subtract
2. Does subtracting 2 work for the other numbers? 18 - 2 = 16, 16 - 2 =
1
4. Yes, it does!
Step 3: State the rule. The rule is "Subtract 2".
Step 4: Continue the pattern using the rule. 14 - 2 = 12, 12 - 2 =
1
0. Step 5: Complete the pattern: 20, 18, 16, 14, 12, 10 Example 3: Counting in 10s Pattern Pattern: 10, 20, 30, __, __ Step 1: Look at the numbers. Are they getting bigger or smaller? They are getting bigger.
Step 2: Figure out the rule. What do we add to 10 to get 20? We add
1
0. Does adding 10 work for the next number? 20+10 =
3
0. Yes!
Step 3: State the rule: Add 10 Step 4: Continue the pattern: 30+10 = 40, 40+10 = 50 Step 5: Complete the pattern: 10, 20, 30, 40, 50 Example 4: Using Shapes to create a pattern Imagine you have these shapes in a row: Circle, Square, Circle, Square, __, __ Step 1: Look at the shapes. What comes after a Square? A Circle.
Step 2: What comes after a Circle? A Square.
Step 3: We can see the pattern is Circle, Square repeated.
Step 4: Complete the pattern: Circle, Square, Circle, Square, Circle, Square Guided Practice (With Solutions)
Question 1: Complete the pattern: 5, 6, 7, __, __ Solution: The numbers are getting bigger, so it's an increasing pattern. The rule is "Add 1". 7 + 1 = 8, 8 + 1 = 9 The completed pattern is: 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 Question 2: Complete the pattern: 12, 10, 8, __, __ Solution: The numbers are getting smaller, so it's a decreasing pattern. The rule is "Subtract 2". 8 - 2 = 6, 6 - 2 = 4 The completed pattern is: 12, 10, 8, 6, 4 Question 3: Complete the pattern: 20, 30, 40, __, __ Solution: The numbers are increasing, so it is an increasing pattern.
The rule is: "Add 10" 40 + 10 = 50, 50 + 10 = 60 The completed pattern is: 20, 30, 40, 50, 60 Question 4: What is the rule for the pattern: 2, 4, 6, 8?
Solution: The numbers are increasing, so it is an increasing pattern. 2 + ? =
4. The answer is 2. 4 + ? =
6. The answer is 2. 6 + ? =
8. The answer is
2. The rule is: "Add 2" Independent Practice (Questions Only)
Complete the pattern: 1, 2, 3, __, __ Complete the pattern: 9, 8, 7, __, __ Complete the pattern: 5, 10, 15, __, __ Complete the pattern: 22, 20, 18, __, __ What is the rule for the pattern: 10, 11, 12, 13?
What is the rule for the pattern: 15, 13, 11, 9?
Complete the pattern: 30, 40, 50, __, __ Thandi has a pattern: Square, Triangle, Square, Triangle, __, __ What comes next? What number comes next in the pattern 2, 4, __, 8? What number comes next in the pattern 10, 8, __, 4?