Topics · Patterns & Equations
Patterns
Every pattern hides a rule. Catch the rule and you can predict what comes next — even far ahead.
Music, tiles, nature, code: patterns run the world.
More ways into this idea
- Play with itRule PlaygroundSet a start and a rule, then watch the pattern and its graph grow
- Play with itTwo-Step MachineMultiply then add — or swap them. Does order matter?
- Play with itPattern MakerDesign your own rule and sign it with a shareable code
Step into a storyThe Bridge LightsThe lights follow a rule. Crack it before the ferry arrives.
Step into a storyThe Seed JarsThe bean plant doesn't know it's following a rule. It is.- Make it a gameRule DetectiveFeed the machine numbers and catch its secret rule
- Make it a gamePattern ForgeSet the start and rule to forge a matching pattern
- Test yourselfA fresh mixed set, whenever you likeExplanations after every question. Nothing is recorded.
Common sticking points
- A common sticking point is only seeing the next step, not the rule. The rule is what lets you jump to the 20th spot without counting 19.
Try this together
Spot a pattern around you (floor tiles, a song's chorus, house numbers). Ask: what's the rule? What would the 10th one be?
1–5 minutes, no materials to buy, nothing to hand in.
Ontario curriculum details
- C1.1Spot and describe repeating, growing and shrinking patterns
- C1.2Create and translate growing and shrinking patterns
- C1.3Find pattern rules and use them to predict
- C1.4Use patterns to connect whole numbers and decimals
Plain-language summaries. See the full curriculum for every expectation and the official source.