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 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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Guided Maths Groups – National Numeracy Learning Progression – Task Cards
A set of 32 task cards with activities for tracking student progress along the numeracy learning progression.
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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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Patterns and Algebra Worksheets - Year 1
2 patterns and algebra worksheets linked to the Australian Curriculum.
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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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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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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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Odd and Even Properties Student Cheat Sheet
Help students remember the properties of odd and even numbers with this student cheat sheet.
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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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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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Year 4 Odd and Even Products in Multiplication Interactive Activity
Explore patterns in odd and even products from multiplication sums with this fun soccer-themed interactive activity.
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Skip Counting Worksheets (Fill in the Blanks)
Excerpt: Use this set of skip counting worksheets to check student understanding of skip counting in increasing intervals of 5, 10 and 100.
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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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Patterns and Algebra Worksheets - Year 4
4 patterns and algebra worksheets linked to the Australian Curriculum.
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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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3 x Simple Dot-To-Dot Worksheets - Counting By Ones
3 fun dot-to-dot worksheets to use when learning to count by 1s.
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Complex Dot-to-dot – Skip Counting by Fives (Turtle) – Worksheet
A complex dot-to-dot where students demonstrate skip counting by fives.
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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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Number Pattern Worksheets - 1 to 20
An professor themed place value worksheet to use in the classroom when completing number patterns.
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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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Skip Counting to 100 - Card Game
Practise skip counting by 2, 5 and 10 with this card game for small groups.
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Find the Pattern Worksheet
A worksheet to assist early learners in recognising patterns.
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1 to 9 Number Sequencing Sausage Dog Activity and Template
A fun sausage dog themed place value activity to use in the classroom when sequencing numbers from 1 to 9.
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Dot-to-Dot Drawing - Numbers by 1 - Elephant
Join the dots and numbers to make a picture.
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The Number Pattern Robot
A fun place value activity to help students identify number patterns and their rules.
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Number Sequencing to 100 - Worksheet
A raindrop themed place value worksheet to use when sequencing numbers to 100.
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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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Guided Maths Groups – National Numeracy Learning Progression – Student Tracker
An individual student tracker for sub-elements of the National Numeracy Learning Progression.
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Python Patterns – Match-Up Activity
An activity for students to consolidate copying and creating patterns.
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Prime Numbers - Assorted Backgrounds
Prime numbers displayed on a hundreds board.
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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 Exit Tickets
Assess student understanding of skip counting within 1000 by 5s 10s and 100s.
- 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