Arts Explorer 4: Patterns in Urban Settigns and Nature

Art Word of the Week: Pattern

A pattern is anything that repeats itself. Patterns can be fancy or simple, regular or irregular, symmetrical or asymmetrical, sequenced or alternating.

Patterns can be seen all around us, whether they be on the fence post or the fresh falling snow landing on the ground. As I was looking around my house, I came across various different patterns. I opened the curtains of the window in my room and saw the unique patterns made out of bricks used make the house in front of ours. Here are two pictures of the same house, from the same view/perspective, but a different zoom level:  

As I headed towards my closet, I came across some very neat patterns - ones I would never have recognized or paid attention to had I not been doing this assignment: I saw patterns on my clothes!

As I headed down the stairs, I saw more patterns! The steps and railings of the staircase made a unique pattern as well :

I looked outside and the flooring had a certain pattern, the fencepost had its own pattern.

There was pattern all around! Patterns can be what the children choose to enrich their artwork or the different styles of lines used on the tiles of the bathroom - it all depends on what perspective you choose to look at it from.

Children love making patterns. As random as our world sometimes seems, a great deal of it contains repetitive elements. Before a child is able to understand basic mathematical functions, he needs to have a solid understanding of how to identify and create patterns. There are a number of fun and creative ways to teach a child patterns.When a number of materials are provided to them (for example a bunch of counting bears), some choose to categorize them by color, some by size.