Lesson 2 of 8 3 min read Free course

What comes next?

Red, blue, red, blue… — spotting a pattern is how a child first predicts what a program will do.

Do this together

Point at the circles and say the colours out loud together: "red, blue, red, blue…". Then ask, "What comes next?" and let the child tap the answer.

Red, blue, red, blue, and an empty circle with a question mark

Red, blue, red, blue… what comes next?

Grown-up tip

Patterns are everywhere — clap, stamp, clap, stamp. Make one with your hands and let the child continue it.

For the grown-up

This is a free activity 2 of 8 in Little Coders: First Patterns, Sorting and Sequences — Eight picture activities for ages 3–5 — no reading, no account, nothing saved. A grown-up reads one line; the child taps. You read the one-line prompt aloud and your child taps the answer; there is nothing to install, the child needs no account of their own, and nothing they do is stored.

Tip: If the child wants the same activity again and again, that is the point — repetition is how sequencing sticks at this age.

A few minutes at a time is plenty, and doing the same activity again is good — repetition is how these first ideas stick. When your child is ready for short sentences and their own typing, the paid courses for older ages carry on from here. See how we handle children's data on our privacy page.