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Your child already lives in a world full of AI, and that will be true for the rest of their life. The good news is that understanding it is well within reach. This course explains how AI really works at your child’s grade level, one clear lesson at a time, so they can use it with confidence and know when to double-check it. The first lesson is below. Read it together and see if it fits.

AI For Youth · Grade 3Patterns and RulesLesson 01 of 08

This lesson is about repeating patterns. You will learn what a repeating pattern is, how to find the part that repeats, and how to check it before you say what comes next.

~15 minNo prerequisites

By the end of this lesson you can

  1. Carry on a pattern of colors, shapes or numbers.
  2. Find the part of a pattern that repeats.
  3. Check that it really does repeat.
01

What a repeating pattern is

A repeating pattern is a row of things where the same small group comes back again and again. The small group is called the repeating part.

Here are three repeating patterns. In each one, work out what comes next.

Three patterns to continue. The colors pattern is gold, grey, gold, grey, gold, grey, then a question mark. The shapes pattern is square, triangle, square, triangle, square, triangle, then a question mark. The longer one is gold, gold, grey, gold, gold, grey, then a question mark. The third one is harder, because the part that repeats is three long, not two.
Figure 1. Three repeating patterns. The repeating part is two long in the first two and three long in the third.

The answers are gold, square and gold.

  1. Pattern 1: the repeating part is gold, grey. It is two long.
  2. Pattern 2: the repeating part is square, triangle. It is two long.
  3. Pattern 3: the repeating part is gold, gold, grey. It is three long. A longer repeating part is harder to spot, but the method is the same.
02

How to find the repeating part

To continue a pattern you do not need to remember the whole row. You need to find the repeating part. There are three steps.

  1. Find the small group that keeps coming back.
  2. Check that it comes back more than once.
  3. Continue the pattern by adding the next thing in the group.
What your eyes actually did with the pattern gold, gold, grey, gold, gold, grey. The repeating part is boxed twice: this bit, and again. The three steps are: find the bit that repeats, check it really does repeat more than once, then you can say what comes next. Step 2 is the one people skip.
Figure 2. The pattern gold, gold, grey, gold, gold, grey, with the repeating part boxed each time it appears.

Worked example. The pattern is gold, gold, grey, gold, gold, grey.

Step 1  Find:      the group is gold, gold, grey
Step 2  Check:     it appears twice, so it really does repeat
Step 3  Continue:  the next group starts again, so next is gold

Step 2 is the step people most often skip. The next section shows why it matters.

03

Why you must check twice

Look at this pattern: gold, grey, gold. What comes next?

Many people say grey. That might be right, but it is a guess. The repeating part gold, grey has only come round once. The pattern could just as easily be gold, grey, gold, gold, grey, gold, with a repeating part of gold, grey, gold. Then the next one is gold.

Rule: a repeating part must come round at least twice before you can be sure of it.

When somebody shows you a pattern, count how many times the repeating part comes round. If it is only once, you are guessing. Guessing is allowed, as long as you know that is what you are doing.

04

Patterns around you

Repeating patterns are everywhere once you look for them. Each one has a repeating part.

the days of the week, over and over              repeating part: 7 long
the stripes on a sweater                         repeating part: 2 long
the tiles on a bathroom floor
school, school, school, school, school, weekend  repeating part: 6 long

Once you have found the repeating part, you can say what comes next without being told.

Try it

  1. square, circle, circle, square, circle, circle, ?
  2. 2, 5, 2, 5, 2, ?
  3. red, red, blue, red, red, blue, red, ?
  4. blue, green, blue, ?
Answers

1. square. The repeating part is square, circle, circle, and it comes round twice.
2. 5. The repeating part is 2, 5.
3. red. The repeating part is red, red, blue, and the last red is the start of the third time round.
4. You cannot be sure yet. Blue, green has only come round once. Green is a reasonable guess, but it is a guess.

Lesson 2 asks for something harder than continuing a pattern: saying its rule in words.

Summary

  • A repeating pattern is a row where the same small group, the repeating part, comes back again and again.
  • To continue a pattern: find the repeating part, check it comes round more than once, then add the next thing in the group.
  • If the repeating part has only come round once, you are guessing.

Key terms

  • Repeating pattern — a row where the same small group comes back again and again.
  • Repeating part — the small group that comes back.
A gold robot wearing a round helmet, sitting among cushions and surrounded by question marks

Check your understanding

5 questions · 70% to pass · retakes encouraged

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That is the whole first lesson. The full AI For Youth: Grade 3 course has 8 lessons, 8 quizzes, and a project. One subscription unlocks every course, kindergarten through grade 12, plus AI Fundamentals for general audiences.

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