The article discusses the expediency of forming in elementary school the intellectual ability to recognize patterns in the surrounding world. Based on the analysis of the available literature, the article reveals the concepts of "regularity", "task for establishing patterns", characterizes the features of the methodology for teaching younger schoolchildren to establish graphic and numerical patterns. The subject of the article is primarily numerical patterns, in connection with which cyclic, increasing, decreasing, as well as mixed numerical patterns that underlie tasks for their identification are described. For some types of tasks, examples of the use of numerical patterns are given: when systematizing, generalizing the program material of the initial mathematics course; checking the level of formation of the corresponding computational skills; preparation for the development of new computational techniques.