AI Tutor
What do stripes on a zebra, musical beats, and brick towers have in common? They all follow a special rule called a pattern.

Repeating Patterns

A repeating pattern has a group of items that repeats over and over in the exact same order. We call the part that repeats the core.
To build your own repeating pattern, choose a short core of 2 or 3 shapes, and repeat it at least three times so everyone can spot your rule.
What happens if a pattern does not stay the same, but gets bigger and bigger at every step?

Growing Patterns

A growing pattern changes by the same amount at every step. Instead of repeating the same core, each step adds more pieces following a rule.
A common mistake is adding a different amount each time, like adding 1 block, then 3 blocks. A true growing pattern must add the same amount at every step!
Can we turn shapes and block towers into number patterns we can write down?

Number Patterns

When we count the objects in each step of a growing pattern, we get a list of numbers called a number pattern.