3
Patterns in dance and music
Joyful Mathematics: Chapter 9
GoalMake, copy and carry on patterns of sounds and moves.
New words
beat · one sound in musicstep · one move in a dancegrowing pattern · a pattern that gets bigger each time
Explanation
Patterns are in music and dance too. A drum can go tap, clap, tap, clap. A dance can go step, step, spin. Say your pattern aloud, then do it again and again. Some patterns grow: 1 clap, then 2 claps, then 3 claps.
Worked examples
At Lohri the children dance: step, step, clap, step, step, clap.
Pooja made a bead string with three colours: red, green, blue, red, green, blue.
A growing pattern: 1 star, 2 stars, 3 stars. Next there will be 4 stars.
Class activity
Drum and dance. Beat a plate or a tin with a spoon: tap, tap, rest. Ask a friend to copy the beats. Then make a dance step pattern together, such as step, turn, step, turn. Can the class do it at once?
Practice
1
What comes next in this growing pattern? Say how many.
5
2
Tap, rest, tap, rest, tap. What comes next?
Rest.
3
Step, step, jump, step, step, jump. How many steps come before each jump?
2
4
Make your own pattern of 6 with two sounds, such as clap and stamp. Say it aloud.
For example clap, stamp, clap, stamp, clap, stamp.
5
What comes next in the colours? Red, red, blue, red, red, blue, red, red?
Blue.