Number patterns & figure patterns

A pattern question always hides a block or a step that repeats. In a figure pattern, read the table down each column: if every new figure adds the same number of dots, that number is the step, and Figure n has step × n plus whatever is left over from Figure 1. Use that rule three ways: forwards to fill in Figure 5, backwards to find which figure has a given count (take away the start, then divide by the step), and far ahead to Figure 72 without drawing it. In a repeating pattern of letters or numbers, find the block, count the whole blocks with a division, and then deal with the remainder letter by letter. The usual slips are multiplying Figure 1 by the figure number, and forgetting the part-block at the end.