Patterns
A repeating pattern is a sequence where the same group of items keeps cycling over and over. The repeating group is called the 'unit'. Find the unit, say it out loud, then keep going to work out what comes next.
Worked examples
What colour comes next? red, blue, red, blue, red, ?
Step 1 — Find the repeating unit: 'red, blue'. Step 2 — Say it out loud: red, blue, red, blue, red… Step 3 — What comes after red in the unit? Blue. So the answer is blue.
Answer: blue
What colour comes next? red, blue, green, red, blue, green, ?
Step 1 — Find the repeating unit: 'red, blue, green' (3 items). Step 2 — Say it out loud: red, blue, green, red, blue, green… Step 3 — After green, the unit starts again with red. So the answer is red.
Answer: red
What shape comes next? circle, square, circle, square, circle, ?
Step 1 — Find the repeating unit: 'circle, square'. Step 2 — Say it out loud: circle, square, circle, square, circle… Step 3 — After circle comes square. So the answer is square.
Answer: square
What size comes next? big, small, big, small, big, ?
Step 1 — Find the repeating unit: 'big, small'. Step 2 — Say it out loud: big, small, big, small, big… Step 3 — After big comes small. So the answer is small.
Answer: small
Tips
- •Always find the repeating unit first — it is usually 2 or 3 items long.
- •Say the pattern out loud — hearing it helps you find where it repeats.
- •Check the unit repeats at least twice before you're sure you've found it.
- •Colour patterns: which colours take turns? Shape patterns: which shapes take turns? Size patterns: big and small switching?