Inherent in the Common Core's Standard for Mathematical Practice to "look for and express regularity in repeated reasoning" (SMP 8) is the idea that students engage in this practice by generalizing (NGA Center and CCSSO 2010). In mathematics, generalizing involves "lifting" and communicating about ideas at a level where the focus is no longer on a particular instance, but rather on patterns and relationships between particular instances (Kaput 1999). Research has shown that, at times, secondary school mathematics teachers find it challenging to respond to students' generalizations in mathematically productive ways (Demonty, Vlassis, and Annick Fagnant 2018). Knowing when students are generalizing and how to respond is important because generalizations are mathematically sophisticated ideas, and they present opportunities to build on students' thinking, extend ideas to new contexts, and move the mathematics forward. To frame their work on generalizing for preservice teachers (PSTs), the authors used a pattern task that they believed would present an accessible entrance into this work for novices. Teachers can use a pattern task to promote and foster generalizing in the mathematics classroom, presenting opportunities to build on students' thinking and extending ideas to new contexts.