Growing Patterns with Nocturnal Animals: Free Printable

My 2nd grader loves patterns. I mean LOVES them. She’s not satisfied with the simple ones either which makes it super fun to work on with her. Last week on her internet math program, she was introduced to growing patterns and has been intrigued with them ever since. Today we worked on growing patterns with this cute nocturnal animal free printable I created.

nocturnal animal pattern cards and growing patterns activity

Tools you’ll need

Don’t worry about making a special trip to the store. You can get all the supplies for this activity right here. Click the pictures above to get what you need.

To prep: Print and laminate the pattern building cards.

This free printable for exploring growing patterns with nocturnal animals is perfect for kids who are ready for a bigger challenge with patterns

You can print multiple copies if you want to make very big copies, but one pattern using all six cards, filled up my dining room table length-wise, so one set can get you far!

What is a growing pattern?

Simply put, it is a pattern that grows or expands. Instead of having the exact same pattern the entire way through, it changes slightly with each repetition. The “pattern” part is that it changes with the same variable every time.

A simple pattern might be:

ABABABABABAB

ABBABBABBABBABBA

AABBAABBAABB

ABCABCABCABCABC

But a growing pattern could be:

A AB ABC ABCD ABCDE ABCDEF

AB ABB ABBB ABBBB ABBBBB

Our favorite of the day was this one!

AAB AABCC AABCCD AABCCDEE AABCCDEEF

Why do we want to learn patterns like these?

First of all, they are great for building reasoning skills. The kids have to explain why the pattern makes sense.

Second, they will help with mathematical problem-solving skills.

A numeric pattern might be:

2, 1, 4, 3, 6, 5, 8, 7 (de-coded that is 2, 2-1, 2×2, 2×2-1, 2×3, 2×3-1, 2×4, 2×4-1)

Of course a second grader is not going to understand a pattern like that, but starting with simple growing patterns will prepare them for the bigger patterns later on.

Our Favorite Nocturnal Animal Books for Kids:

We can’t live without these!

Once your child’s creativity is sparked with this fun activity, take it a step further with these engaging resources:

Fennec Foxes (Nocturnal Animals) Kinkajous (Nocturnal Animals) Wombats (Nocturnal Animals) Owls (Nocturnal Animals) Naked Mole Rats (Nocturnal Animals) Aye-Ayes (Animales nocturnos / Nocturnal Animals) (Spanish Edition) After Dark: Poems about Nocturnal Animals Night Animals Night Animals Need Sleep Too Secret Pizza Party Fiesta secreta de pizza (Spanish Edition)

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Be sure to check out all of the great Nocturnal Animal Posts from the 2nd Grade Blogging Team!

Bat Science Experiments: Echolocation Activities from Preschool Powol Packets
Nocturnal and Diurnal Animals Sorting Activity from Look! We’re Learning!
Nocturnal Animal Report: Hedgehogs from Crafty Kids at Home
Bats in a Cave Sight Word Game from Creative Family Fun

Creating Growing Patterns with Nocturnal Animals Free Printable

What is a growing pattern?