Creating Our Own Repeating PatternsActivities & Teaching Strategies
Active learning works because young students build patterns through touch, movement, and talk. When children manipulate real objects, their brains connect concrete actions to abstract ideas like repetition and sequence.
Learning Objectives
- 1Create repeating patterns using two or more distinct objects or symbols.
- 2Identify the unit of repeat in a given AB or AAB pattern.
- 3Extend a given repeating pattern by accurately predicting and adding the next two elements.
- 4Describe a repeating pattern using precise mathematical language, such as 'unit of repeat' and 'repeats'.
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Classroom Scavenger: Object Patterns
Students pair up to hunt for two different classroom objects, like pencils and erasers. They create and extend an ABAB pattern on the floor or desk, then describe it to the class. Switch objects for a second round to try AAB.
Prepare & details
Can you make your own AB pattern using two different objects?
Facilitation Tip: During Classroom Scavenger, circulate and ask each pair to name their pattern unit aloud before moving to the next station.
Setup: Varies; may include outdoor space, lab, or community setting
Materials: Experience setup materials, Reflection journal with prompts, Observation worksheet, Connection-to-content framework
Body Beat Patterns: Whole Class Rhythm
Model an AAB pattern using claps, snaps, and stamps. Students stand in a circle and repeat it together, then create their own AAB body pattern. Perform for the group and vote on the most creative.
Prepare & details
What objects in the classroom could you use to make a repeating pattern?
Facilitation Tip: While guiding Body Beat Patterns, model clapping the unit twice before adding a new sound so students see the repeat structure clearly.
Setup: Varies; may include outdoor space, lab, or community setting
Materials: Experience setup materials, Reflection journal with prompts, Observation worksheet, Connection-to-content framework
Nature Chain: Repeating Links
Collect natural items like leaves and twigs outside. In small groups, link them into AB or AAB chains on paper. Extend the pattern by two units and explain the repeating part to another group.
Prepare & details
How could you make a pattern that goes AAB, AAB, AAB?
Facilitation Tip: For Nature Chain, lay out three completed chains side by side and ask students to compare the repeating parts before adding their own links.
Setup: Varies; may include outdoor space, lab, or community setting
Materials: Experience setup materials, Reflection journal with prompts, Observation worksheet, Connection-to-content framework
Bead String: Personal Patterns
Provide string and large beads in four colors. Students individually make a necklace with a repeating unit like ABAB. Wear and share with a partner, predicting the next beads if extended.
Prepare & details
Can you make your own AB pattern using two different objects?
Facilitation Tip: When introducing Bead String, demonstrate holding up the first three beads and saying the unit name before threading the next three.
Setup: Varies; may include outdoor space, lab, or community setting
Materials: Experience setup materials, Reflection journal with prompts, Observation worksheet, Connection-to-content framework
Teaching This Topic
Focus first on the unit of repeat rather than the whole chain. Use gestures like tapping or pointing to mark the start of each new unit. Avoid naming patterns by letters too soon; let children describe their own units with words like 'red then blue' first. Research shows that children who physically move items while naming the unit develop stronger pattern recognition skills.
What to Expect
Successful learning looks like children creating clear repeating units with two or more objects, describing the pattern verbally, and predicting the next item in the sequence. Students should point to the 'part that repeats' and use words like 'again' or 'next'.
These activities are a starting point. A full mission is the experience.
- Complete facilitation script with teacher dialogue
- Printable student materials, ready for class
- Differentiation strategies for every learner
Watch Out for These Misconceptions
Common MisconceptionDuring Classroom Scavenger, students often limit patterns to familiar items like crayons.
What to Teach Instead
Provide diverse objects and model making patterns with textures or sizes, like smooth block then rough leaf, to broaden their view.
Common MisconceptionDuring Body Beat Patterns, children may clap randomly and call it a repeating pattern.
What to Teach Instead
Stop the group after three beats, point to the unit, and ask, 'What part keeps coming back?' to reinforce the repeat structure.
Common MisconceptionDuring Nature Chain, students think patterns never stop or change once started.
What to Teach Instead
Ask them to make a chain that repeats exactly five times, then discuss where the pattern ends and why.
Assessment Ideas
After Classroom Scavenger, provide a mix of objects and ask students to create an AB pattern and then an AAB pattern. Observe if they can explain the repeating unit before moving on.
During Bead String, ask each student to thread three beads, name the repeating unit, then add two more beads before removing their string. Collect to check if the unit is clearly repeated.
After Nature Chain, hold up several completed chains and ask, 'What is the same in all of these patterns? What is the part that happens again and again?' Listen for responses that identify the repeating unit.
Extensions & Scaffolding
- Challenge: Ask students to create a pattern with three objects in the unit and describe it to a partner.
- Scaffolding: Provide a strip with the first three items already placed to help students continue the pattern.
- Deeper: Have students photograph their patterns and write or dictate a sentence about their repeating unit to share with the class.
Key Vocabulary
| Pattern | A sequence of objects, shapes, or sounds that repeats in a predictable way. |
| Repeating Pattern | A pattern where a specific group of elements, called the unit of repeat, occurs over and over again in the same order. |
| Unit of Repeat | The smallest group of elements that repeats to form a repeating pattern. For example, in ABAB, 'AB' is the unit of repeat. |
| Extend | To continue a pattern by adding more elements that follow the established rule. |
Suggested Methodologies
Planning templates for Mathematics
5E Model
The 5E Model structures lessons through five phases (Engage, Explore, Explain, Elaborate, and Evaluate), guiding students from curiosity to deep understanding through inquiry-based learning.
Unit PlannerMath Unit
Plan a multi-week math unit with conceptual coherence: from building number sense and procedural fluency to applying skills in context and developing mathematical reasoning across a connected sequence of lessons.
RubricMath Rubric
Build a math rubric that assesses problem-solving, mathematical reasoning, and communication alongside procedural accuracy, giving students feedback on how they think, not just whether they got the right answer.
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