A different way to look
Math can start with noticing.
When children are working with numbers, it helps to have more than an answer key or a list to memorize. They need chances to look closely, make comparisons, ask what they see, and return to an idea until it begins to make sense. A good math book can give that process a shape. It can turn a page into a place where a child notices that numbers repeat, line up, skip, and connect.
Number Patterns in Hundred Charts was created by educator and mother Teressa L. Diggs for that kind of exploration. It brings hundred charts, addition tables, and multiplication tables together in a format that invites children to study how numbers behave. Instead of asking a learner to accept a fact without context, the pages make room to see relationships take form.
Built from real family learning
A math resource made for curious hands and minds.
Terri began home schooling in 1985, when she was looking for a way to help her children learn mathematics without relying only on rote practice. Reading and math felt like the natural foundations to begin with, but the usual math materials did not give her family the kind of creative, visual experience she wanted. So she made her own book of number facts using hundred charts along with addition and multiplication tables.
The idea was simple: put the pages in clear sleeves, carefully cut out the black squares, and layer the charts so shared patterns could show through. A child could see that a number does not stand alone. It belongs to a row, a column, a sequence, a set of multiples, and a growing network of ideas. The activity gives adults and children something specific to look at together while they talk through what the pattern might mean.
That origin still matters. This is not a book built around pressure or a promise of a quick fix. It is an invitation to slow down long enough for a learner to see a number relationship with their own eyes. For a child who enjoys puzzles, visual organization, or finding the rule behind a sequence, that can make math feel like an open question instead of a closed door.
The book
Keep number patterns within reach.
A practical reference for children who learn by seeing connections, trying an idea, and coming back to it again.
Hands-on learning
Number Patterns: In Hundred Charts
An interactive reference book of number facts and patterns, designed for looking, playing, comparing, and discovering how numbers connect.
Find the book ↗What makes it different
Make the relationship visible before asking a child to remember it.
Many math books are useful for practice. This one is useful for observation. A hundred chart places the numbers from one to one hundred where children can scan across, down, and diagonally. That physical arrangement can make questions easier to ask. What changes when you count by twos? Which numbers appear when you count by fives? Where do the multiples of three begin to line up? When the pattern is on the page, a child has something real to point to while they think.
The addition and multiplication tables give the exploration another layer. A child can compare two facts side by side, look for repeated results, and discover that the same answer may belong to more than one number pair. With the cut-out windows and clear sleeves, the pages can be combined to reveal common multiples. The activity turns a fact that may have felt isolated into part of a visible pattern.
That makes the book a natural fit for adults who want to support understanding alongside practice. It can be opened for a short number conversation, used as a reference during schoolwork, or brought out when a child is ready to investigate a particular pattern. There is no need to complete it in one sitting. The most useful question is often the one that sends a learner back to look again.
It also gives families a way to make math feel personal. One child may enjoy searching for a repeated shape across the chart. Another may want to predict the next number in a pattern. Another may be more interested in the act of placing pages together and seeing what appears. Those different entry points can help a child find a relationship with math that feels less like being tested and more like being invited to discover.
Ways to explore together
Follow the pattern, then follow the question.
Start with a small prompt. Ask a child to find the numbers they say when counting by twos, fives, or tens. Notice the spaces between them. Ask what stays the same and what changes as the count moves across the chart. A child does not need to name a rule immediately. Pointing out a repeated color, shape, or interval can be the beginning of an important observation.
When working with multiplication, try covering or combining pages and looking for the numbers that show through. Invite the child to guess what they will see before they look. Then compare the guess with the chart. This keeps the activity active without making the answer feel like a performance. The book gives both the child and the adult a shared object of attention, which can make a math conversation easier to begin.
Families who want more of Terri’s perspective on individualized learning can visit her home schooling experience and philosophy of education. The wider Learning page also shares the belief behind the book: curiosity grows when children have room to explore connections for themselves.
For curious learners
A book for returning to an idea until it clicks.
Number Patterns in Hundred Charts is a strong choice for children who respond to visual patterns, hands-on materials, and the freedom to compare ideas at their own pace. It is also useful for parents, caregivers, educators, and librarians who want a resource that opens a conversation instead of ending one with a single answer.
The book does not replace the relationships that make learning meaningful. It gives those relationships a starting point. A chart on the table, a question asked aloud, and a child’s own observation can become the moment that makes a number fact easier to understand and remember.
Find Number Patterns in Hundred Charts ↗Frequently asked questions
Before you choose a math book.
What is Number Patterns in Hundred Charts?
Number Patterns in Hundred Charts is a hands-on reference book by Teressa L. Diggs. It uses hundred charts and number tables to help children look closely at counting, multiplication facts, common multiples, and the relationships that appear when numbers are arranged in a clear visual pattern.
How is this math book meant to be used?
The book is made for looking, comparing, and trying ideas. Terri originally designed the pages to be placed in clear sleeves after the black squares are carefully cut out. When pages are layered together, the windows can reveal shared multiples and make number relationships easier to notice.
Is it only for home schooling families?
No. The book can support a home learning routine, a classroom activity, a library table, or a curious child who enjoys exploring patterns. It is a resource for adults who want to make room for conversation and discovery instead of treating every number fact as something to memorize in isolation.
What makes a hands-on math book useful?
A hands-on math book gives a child something concrete to study, move, compare, and talk about. Seeing number patterns can make an abstract idea feel more approachable. The value is not in racing through a page, but in returning to a pattern and noticing one more connection.
Explore the pattern
Bring number play to the table.
Start with a hundred chart, then see what a curious learner notices next.