7 Up: A Marilyn Burns Card Game
Skill: Combinations of ten:
Knowing combinations of ten is an essential math skill and this game provides lots of practice. It can be played with a partner or as a version of solitaire. For young children who are still learning their “friends of ten”, you can draw a ten frame as shown to help them visualize two numbers that make ten.
To play, you need a regular deck of cards with face cards removed. Your child can play this game as solitaire or take turns with a partner. A player’s turn lasts until the player can no longer make ten and all the cards have been used up. Then it is the next player’s turn.
- To deal, have your child deal 7 cards face up in a row.
- To play, the first player removes the cards with 10 on them or 2 cards that add up to ten.
- Each time a player removes cards, their partner replaces them with cards from the remaining deck.
- When it’s not possible to make ten, the partner deals 7 new cards on top of the existing cards.
- The game ends when it is no longer possible to make combinations of ten or all of the cards are used up. The player totals the number of cards left to determine their points.
- Partners switch roles. The partner with the lowest number of points wins the round.