Early Math Project

Explore the visual and sound patterns of seven garden bugs that float, crawl, buzz, nibble, chirp, twinkle, and move up, down, and around.

“Good night.” “Good night.” Who turned on the light?

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Math Connections:

               Patterns                Pattern Recognition

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Activities To Do Together:

• Talk with your child about the types of patterns you see throughout this book. Pick two pages of the story and see how many patterns you can find on the pages.

• Make a collage with different types of patterns.

• Design a bug that has a pattern.

• Go on a pattern scavenger hunt looking for AB, ABB, ABC, and ABCD patterns.

• Look at a basket of laundry and identify different patterns that you find on the clothing - how many patterns of each type were you able to find on the clothes?

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Extension Questions:

1. What bug would you add to the story? What would be the bug’s pattern? Would the bug have a pattern as part of the way it looks, what it does, or the sound it makes?

2. Flutter-float, flutter-float is a simple AB pattern. Hop-kick, hop-kick is another simple AB pattern. What AB pattern can you create? Why do you think it’s an AB pattern?

3. Look at the borders on the pages of this book. What do you notice?

4. The caterpillar goes nibble-nibble-bite-chew. What patterns can you find on the story pages with the caterpillar. How are the patterns like nibble-nibble-bite-chew?

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Vocabulary for Building Math Concepts:

AAB pattern, AB pattern, ABC pattern, ABCD pattern, along, around, down, first, four, in, inside, late, near, out, part, pattern, shapes, six, too, two, up

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Please check out the Book Guide for Pattern Bugs for more!

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Online External Resources for Pattern Bugs:

• Developing Pattern Awareness with Young Children

• Patterns are Sequences Governed by a Rule - Big Ideas from Erikson Institute

• Five Books for Exploring Growing Patterns Recommended by Erikson Institute