Number Patterns Teaching Resources
Explore number patterns in your maths classes this school year with fun worksheets, games and more teacher resources created to help your students understand how numbers in a sequence relate to one another.
Aligned with the Australian Version 9.0 maths standards, the printable and digital activities in this collection were created by the maths teachers on the Teach Starter team to help you save time on your lesson plans.
Whether this is your first year teaching about number patterns or you're just looking for a little extra help, we've got you covered. Read on for a primer from our teacher team! We explain what number patterns are so you can share with your class, plus we explore three common patterns.
What Are Number Patterns? A Kid-Friendly Definition
A number pattern is a series of numbers that each follow the same rule. These patterns or sequences can help us find missing numbers or identify what number will come next in a series.
For example, let's say you are given the following list of numbers:
- 4, 8, 12, 16, 20, 24
This is an example of a number pattern in which the next number in the series is 4 more than the previous number. Once you can identify the pattern in a series of numbers like this one, you can then use that pattern to determine what number comes next or even what numbers could have come before the list began.
This is one of the many reasons number patterns are an important part of building our students' algebraic reasoning skills. They help kids understand how numbers can be related to one another and apply what they know about those relationships to solve problems.
3 Common Types of Number Patterns
We can't talk about number patterns without breaking down the different types your students are going to encounter in their maths journey!
Linear Patterns
Linear patterns are number patterns in which the numbers increase or decrease by the same amount each time.
The example used above — in which each number in the series increased by a quantity of 4 — is a simple example of a linear pattern.
Geometric Number Patterns
Another type of pattern students may have to contend with is the geometric number pattern. This type involves numbers that are multiplied or divided by a constant factor.
The multiplication table is an example of a geometric number pattern.
Recursive Patterns
Students will have to make full use of their understanding of the four whole number operations to work with recursive patterns. That's because this pattern involves finding each successive number in the sequence by performing a specific operation on the previous number(s).
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Skip Counting Robot Strips - 2s, 5s and 10s
A set of 12 skip counting robot strips to help students skip count by 2s, 5s and 10s.
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Number Sequencing 1 to 20 - Worksheet
A monster themed place value worksheet to use when identifying the missing numbers in a sequence.
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Odd and Even Word Problems
Extend students with these odd and even number word problems and worksheets.
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Odd and Even Properties Worksheet
Predict and confirm if the product of adding, subtracting, multiplying and dividing sums is odd or even.
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Skip Counting Worksheets (Complete the Series)
Use this set of skip counting worksheets to check student understanding of skip counting in increasing intervals of 5, 10 and 100, by finishing a series.
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Skip Counting Worksheets for International Dot Day
Use this cute caterpillar themed worksheet for your students to practise and improve their skip counting skills!
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Counting by 5's Maze
Get to the party by skip counting to 100 with our counting by 5’s worksheet.
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Hundreds Boards with Missing Numbers - 1-100 and 101-200
A set of 12 hundreds boards worksheets with missing numbers.
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Patterns and Algebra Worksheets - Year 5
4 patterns and algebra worksheets linked to the Australian Curriculum.
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Number and Place Value Worksheets - Year 1
8 number and place value worksheets linked to the Australian Curriculum.
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Skip Counting Number Puzzles
A fun and engaging set of 10 number puzzles to help students skip count in the classroom.
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Skip Counting by 2,3,4,5 and 10 Board Game
Have students correctly answer problems involving skip counting and multiplication to be the first to lay down 4 game pieces in a row!
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Patterns and Algebra Worksheets - Year 3
2 patterns and algebra worksheets linked to the Australian Curriculum.
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Odd and Even Cut-and-Paste Worksheet
Engage students in practising their knowledge of odd and even numbers with these simple cut-and-paste worksheets.
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Number Sequencing to 1 000 - Worksheet
A place value worksheet to use when sequencing numbers to 1 000.
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Prime Numbers - Assorted Backgrounds
Prime numbers displayed on a hundreds board.
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Odd and Even Numbers Poster Set
Help students memorise the rules for identifying odd and even numbers.
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Complex Dot-to-dot – Skip Counting by Twos (Car) – Worksheet
A complex dot-to-dot where students demonstrate skip counting by twos.
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Ten More, Ten Less Task Cards
A set of 24 task cards to enable students to practise identifying ten more and ten less than a number.
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Skip Counting by 2s Dominoes
A set of dominoes to use in the classroom when skip counting by 2s from 0 to 100.
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Odd and Even Properties Poster Set
Teach students about the different properties of odd and even numbers when adding, subtracting, multiplying and dividing.
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Odd and Even Number Games
Practise identifying odd and even numbers in this fun set of game boards.
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Odd and Even Colour-by-Number Worksheets
Practise identifying if the sum of two numbers is odd or even with this fun set of colour-by-number worksheets.
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Charts of Odd and Even Numbers Up to 500
Encourage your students to identify odd and even numbers with this set of number charts up to 500.
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Bar Model Poster Pack
Help your students solve problems using the four operations with a pack of printable strip diagram anchor charts.
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Number Patterns – More and Less Worksheets
Use place value skills to mentally add and subtract 10 or 100 to a given number with this set of worksheets.
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Cartesian Plane Poster
A poster that explains the features of Cartesian Planes.
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Patterns and Algebra Worksheets - Year 2
4 patterns and algebra worksheets linked to the Australian Curriculum.
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Snail Trail Odd and Even Properties Worksheet
Help students identify the properties of odd and even numbers and using the ‘rules’ when calculating with this maze-style worksheet.
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Naming Number Patterns Board Game
Play this number patterns board game which includes 36 question cards.
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Maths Mazes (Number Sequencing)
Skip count your way through these mazes that focus on number sequencing.
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Complex Dot-to-dot – Skip Counting by Twos (Seahorses) – Worksheet
A complex dot-to-dot where students demonstrate skip counting by twos.
- Number Patterns Worksheets
- Number Patterns Games
- Number Patterns Posters
- Number Patterns for Preschool/Kindergarten
- Number Patterns for Foundation Year
- Number Patterns for Year 1
- Number Patterns for Year 2
- Number Patterns for Year 3
- Number Patterns for Year 4
- Number Patterns for Year 5
- Number Patterns for Year 6
- Number Patterns for Year 7