NNAT Number Series Patterns 1 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: In a visual number pattern showing 2, 4, 8, 16, what operation determines the next number?
- Multiplying by 2 each time (Correct answer)
- Adding 2 each time
- Adding the previous two numbers
- Subtracting from 20
Correct answer: Multiplying by 2 each time
Each number is doubled (multiplied by 2), creating a geometric sequence.
Question 2: A sequence shows shapes with 1, 3, 6, 10 dots. What pattern determines the next count?
- Triangular numbers — each adds one more than the previous addition (1, +2, +3, +4, +5) (Correct answer)
- Doubling each time
- Adding 3 each time
- Random arrangement
Correct answer: Triangular numbers — each adds one more than the previous addition (1, +2, +3, +4, +5)
These are triangular numbers where the difference between terms increases by 1 each time.
Question 3: A visual sequence alternates between adding 3 and subtracting 1. Starting at 2: 2, 5, 4, 7, 6. What comes next?
- 9 (adding 3 to 6) (Correct answer)
- 5 (subtracting 1 from 6)
- 8
- 10
Correct answer: 9 (adding 3 to 6)
The pattern alternates: +3, -1, +3, -1. After 6 (which was -1), the next step is +3, giving 9.
Question 4: What strategy helps identify complex number sequence patterns?
- Calculate the differences between consecutive terms, then check if those differences form their own pattern (Correct answer)
- Always assume multiplication
- Only look at the first and last terms
- Guess the average
Correct answer: Calculate the differences between consecutive terms, then check if those differences form their own pattern
Finding the first differences (and sometimes second differences) between terms often reveals the underlying pattern.
Question 5: A sequence shows: 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8. What comes next?
- 13 (each number is the sum of the two before it) (Correct answer)
- 10
- 11
- 16
Correct answer: 13 (each number is the sum of the two before it)
This is the Fibonacci sequence where each term equals the sum of the two preceding terms: 5 + 8 = 13.
Question 6: Visual tiles show 4, 9, 16, 25. What pattern connects these numbers?
- They are perfect squares: 2², 3², 4², 5² (Correct answer)
- They increase by 5 each time
- They double each time
- They are prime numbers
Correct answer: They are perfect squares: 2², 3², 4², 5²
Each number is a perfect square: 4=2², 9=3², 16=4², 25=5². The next would be 36=6².
NNAT Number Series Patterns 1
In a visual number pattern showing 2, 4, 8, 16, what operation determines the next number?