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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Fishing Odd or Even Numbers Worksheets
Go fishing for odd and even numbers with your students using this set of three worksheets.
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Find and Colour – Prime and Composite Numbers
Encourage your year 6 students to identify prime and composite numbers up to 100 with this free find and colour worksheet.
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Odd and Even Boats Craft Activity
Create a gorgeous boat-themed odd and even craft display all while showing an understanding of odd and even numbers.
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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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Decimal Patterns Maths Mazes
Find your way through this set of maths mazes by determining the addition or subtraction pattern in a sequence of decimal numbers.
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Complex Dot-to-dot – Square Numbers (Skateboarder) – Worksheet
A complex dot-to-dot where students order square numbers.
- Free Plan
Python Patterns – Match-Up Activity
An activity for students to consolidate copying and creating patterns.
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Hundreds Board
A hundreds chart that can be used for a variety of activities.
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1–120 Number Board
A black and white chart with numbers 1–120 that can be used for a variety of activities.
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Pattern Activity Cards - Sport
Pattern activities using sport related pictures.
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Pattern Activity Cards - Little Red Hen
Pattern activities using pictures from The Little Red Hen.
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Pattern Activity Cards - Fruit
Pattern activities using fruit.
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Dot-to-Dot Drawing - Numbers by 10 - Shark
Join the dots and numbers to make a picture.
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Dot-to-Dot Drawing - Numbers by 5 - Astronaut
Join the dots and numbers to make a picture.
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Dot-to-Dot Drawing - Numbers by 2 - Dinosaur
Join the dots and numbers to make a picture.
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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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Prime Numbers - Assorted Backgrounds
Prime numbers displayed on a hundreds board.
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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 Patterns PowerPoint
A 12 page editable PowerPoint presentation to use as part of a numeracy lesson when teaching place value and number patterns to younger students.
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Patterns in Multiplication Cut and Paste
Teach your students about odd and even products in multiplication with this cut-and-paste worksheet.
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Odd and Even Patterns in Multiplication Task Cards
Help your students discover patterns in odd and even numbers in multiplication sums with this set of task cards.
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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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Odd or Even Under 20 Cut and Paste Worksheets
Review odd and even numbers with this set of two cut and paste worksheets.
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Odd and Even Properties Investigation
Explore odd and even number properties with this fun chef inspired investigation project.
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Skip Counting by 1, 2, 5 and 10 Sorting Activity
Set up this sorting activity as a small group or rotation task for your students to practise thier skip counting skills.
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Addition and Subtraction Rules for Odd and Even Numbers Matching Activity
A matching game to play when learning addition and subtraction rules for odd and even numbers.
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Sorting Odd and Even House Numbers Cut and Paste Worksheet
Practise sorting odd and even numbers with this set of cut and paste worksheets.
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Odd and Even Monsters Sorting Activity
Sort odd and even numbers in this fun monster-themed sorting activity.
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Skip Counting Fishing Interactive Activity
Assign this fun fishing game to help your students practise their skip counting skills using digital technology.
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Skip Counting Exit Tickets
Assess student understanding of skip counting within 1000 by 5s 10s and 100s.
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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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10 More, 10 Less, 100 More, 100 Less — I Have, Who Has Game
Find the number ten more than, ten less than, one hundred more than, and one hundred less than the given number in this fun whole-class game!
- 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