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yr0_algebra_repeating-and-growing-patterns_repeating-patterns-with-colour-and-shape

The document discusses the concept of repeating patterns using color and shape, emphasizing the importance of recognizing and creating these patterns in educational activities. It outlines three parts of activities: sorting objects based on attributes, recording patterns using colored materials, and forming and extending patterns with attribute blocks. These exercises aim to enhance students' understanding of patterns and their descriptive language related to attributes.

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Gabriel Nkpedzi
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© © All Rights Reserved
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
4 views

yr0_algebra_repeating-and-growing-patterns_repeating-patterns-with-colour-and-shape

The document discusses the concept of repeating patterns using color and shape, emphasizing the importance of recognizing and creating these patterns in educational activities. It outlines three parts of activities: sorting objects based on attributes, recording patterns using colored materials, and forming and extending patterns with attribute blocks. These exercises aim to enhance students' understanding of patterns and their descriptive language related to attributes.

Uploaded by

Gabriel Nkpedzi
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Repeating patterns with colour and shape

Repeating patterns are patterns that have a ‘repeating unit’ or ‘unit of repeat’.

If the objects in the pattern are an identical shape (e.g. beads), the repeating unit might be defined by
colour. For example, in the pattern red-yellow-red-yellow-red-yellow, the repeating unit is red-yellow.

If the objects in the pattern are different shapes, an example pattern might be square-oval-square-
square-oval-square-square-oval-square. In this example, the repeating unit is square-oval-square.

Understanding non-number patterns such as these can support learners later to notice repeating
elements in the number system such as odd-even-odd-even.

In these activities, students explore the attributes of colour and shape and apply these to interpret,
continue and create repeating patterns.

© 2020 Commonwealth of Australia, unless otherwise indicated. Creative Commons Attribution 4.0, unless otherwise indicated.
Part 1: Sorting
Teacher notes

Set up: Give pairs of students a set of about 20 objects. These can be collections of small
toys (such as teddies or dinosaurs), attribute blocks or container lids.

Explore: Ask students to sort the objects into groups according to an attribute of their
choice. The grouping of toys may be based on colour, size or type, while the grouping of
attribute blocks may be based on colour, shape, size or thickness. For the lids, the groupings
may be based on material (eg plastic or metal) or shape (eg rectangular or round).

Give students opportunities to describe the basis on which they sorted their objects. This
helps to develop their language of attributes of shape (eg triangles, squares, circles), colour
(eg red, yellow) and size (eg small or large).

© 2020 Commonwealth of Australia, unless otherwise indicated. Creative Commons Attribution 4.0, unless otherwise indicated.
Part 2: Recording patterns
Teacher notes

Why this activity: This activity improves students’ fine motor skills, emphasises that writing
conventionally begins on the left and moves horizontally across the page as well as strengthening
awareness of pattern.

Materials:

● Blank page
● Coloured pencils, or coloured circle stickers, or coloured paper
circles and paste

Explore: Give students a number of coloured circle shapes and ask them to make a pattern.

The pattern can be recorded in one of three ways:

● pasting coloured circle stickers onto a piece of paper


● colouring circle shapes drawn on paper
● drawing and colouring their own circles

This activity can be repeated using different shapes such as triangles and squares or combinations of
shapes.

© 2020 Commonwealth of Australia, unless otherwise indicated. Creative Commons Attribution 4.0, unless otherwise indicated.
Part 3: Forming and extending patterns
Teacher notes

Set up: Give students attribute blocks.

Explore: Ask them to make a pattern. Some students may


choose a pattern based on shape (triangle, square, circle,
triangle, square, circle …) while others may choose a pattern
based on colour (red, blue, red, blue ...).

Invite students to explain the basis on which they built the


pattern. Encourage them to state the attribute as well as
describe the sequence of blocks.

Now ask students to make a new pattern, swap them and try to extend each other’s patterns. Support
students to recognise and extend the patterns that others have created. Describing and explaining to
each other is the key purpose of the activity.

For the pattern below, a student may choose to focus only on shape (ignoring size and colour) and say,
‘My pattern keeps going triangle, square, circle. I chose them because of their shape.’

© 2020 Commonwealth of Australia, unless otherwise indicated. Creative Commons Attribution 4.0, unless otherwise indicated.
Some students may be able to combine two different attributes in their pattern. In the pattern below,
the colours are red, yellow, red, yellow… and the shapes are triangle, triangle, circle, circle….

If students have difficulty focusing on a stated attribute in a pattern, give them a limited set of blocks. If
the colour and the size are the same then students can focus on the shape. For example, ‘My small
green shape pattern is a triangle, then a circle, then a triangle, then a circle.’

© 2020 Commonwealth of Australia, unless otherwise indicated. Creative Commons Attribution 4.0, unless otherwise indicated.
If the blocks are the same colour and shape students can focus on the size. For example, ‘My pattern is a
small square then a medium square then a large square.

© 2020 Commonwealth of Australia, unless otherwise indicated. Creative Commons Attribution 4.0, unless otherwise indicated.

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