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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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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Finding Patterns in Addition Charts (Odd and Even Numbers) Worksheet
Explore odd and even number patterns using an addition chart with your students.
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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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Year 4 Odd and Even Properties Task Cards
Assess students understanding of the properites of odd and even numbers with these task cards.
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Ordering Numbers Worksheets - Halloween Cut and Paste
Share these ordering numbers worksheets with your students for some spook-tacular Halloween fun!
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Odd and Even Properties Flipbook
Teach your students about the properties of odd and even numbers with this flipbook.
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Odd or Even Tic-Tac-Toe Game
Practise identifying odd and even in simple numbers and sums with this fun Tic-Tac-Toe game
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Odd and Even Maze Worksheets
Explore odd and even numbers with your students with these fun maze activities.
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Space-Themed Odd and Even Board Game
Play this space-themed game and practise odd and even numbers at the same time
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Odd and Even Numbers Four in a Row Game
Play four in a row and practise knowledge of 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 Numbers PowerPoint
A 23 slide editable PowerPoint template to use when introducing odd and even numbers to younger students.
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Odd and Even Numbers Sorting Activity
Identify and sort 2- and 3-digit numbers into odd and even categories.
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Even and Odd Numbers Task Cards - Word Problems
Identify odd and even numbers within word problems with a set of task cards.
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Skip Counting by 10s I Have, Who Has Game
Use this fast-paced whole class game to help your students practise skip counting by tens.
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10 More, 10 Less Colouring Worksheets (Differentiated)
Use this ten more, ten less worksheet set to engage your students while they practise computing 10 more or 10 less than a number within 120.
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Graphing Numerical Equations – Google Slides Interactive Activity
Recognise and analyse patterns in graphs, input-output tables and equations with this interactive activity.
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Number Patterns: More or Less – Puzzle Match-Up
Use your understanding of place value and skip counting to determine 10 or 100 more or less than a 3-digit number with this set of puzzles.
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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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Number Neighbourhood - Number Line Sequencing Cards
Print a set of colourful numbered houses to use for skip counting, ordering, and comparing numbers.
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Evaluating Expressions – Match-Up Activity
Practise substituting values for variables while evaluating expressions with this match-up activity.
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Naming Number Patterns Board Game
Play this number patterns board game which includes 36 question cards.
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1-100 Number Chart - Sequencing Activity
Count by 1’s with your primary students by arranging number tiles 1-100.
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Counting by 10's Maze
Find the fun and learn to skip count by 10s up to 100 with this engaging maze activity!
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Complex Dot-to-dot – Prime Numbers (Gymnast) – Worksheet
A complex dot-to-dot where students demonstrate their knowledge of prime numbers.
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Numbers 1-20
A bright number board representing numbers 1-20.
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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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Dot-to-Dot Drawing - Numbers by 1 - Caterpillar
Join the dots and numbers to make a picture.
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Pattern Activity Cards - Sport
Pattern activities using sport related pictures.
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Pattern Activity Cards - Shapes
Pattern activities using different shapes.
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Pattern Activity Cards - Pirates
Pattern activities using pirate pictures.
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Pattern Activity Cards - Pencils
Pattern activities using coloured pencils.
- Number Patterns Worksheets
- Number Patterns Games
- Number Patterns Posters
- Number Patterns Templates
- 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