Game on: pick-up-sticks

Having broken the writer’s block a little, time for some more games. For all of my caveat that I didn’t much enjoy games as a child, there were some that I did.

Ways to like games (when you don’t)

If you are the Sore Loser at home, it can help to go somewhere else to play games. Somewhere where there are different games, where you can reinvent your player status, perhaps.

One of these places was going to my grandparents in Edinburgh.  We weren’t there very often, the games weren’t the same as the ones at home, and somehow I got over the gameplaying grumps, and enjoyed some of it.

Find what you’re good at – and play that

If you don’t like games, maybe it’s worth thinking about what you’re good at, and seeing if there’s a game based on that.  It might be counting, it might be spotting patterns – it might even be keeping a straight face. Work on that.

One thing I can manage a certain amount of is sleight of hand (for want of a better description). Think Jenga (separate post to come there), and, in this case, pick-up-sticks.

I have a feeling that it may also be known as Spillikins, but for me, it’s pick-up-sticks.

Pick-up-sticks

On to the game in hand. Pick-up-sticks is a bit like a handful of double-ended chopsticks. They are wooden, come in different colours, and usually the ends are sharpened to points. (Invoke enough adults to play at this point, if the description makes you nervous).

The sticks are kept in a tin, a long thin canister. (Part of the interest, for the Sore Loser, is the vintage tin – one I now own, in fact.) It’s best to have a flat surface to play on, something like a tray or a table top.

Tip the sticks out of the tin, and let them fall on the flat surface.  The trick is now to acquire as many sticks as you can, taking it in turns to…pick up sticks.

Strategy

The easy ones are any that have rolled to the side, and can be picked up without disturbing other sticks. (If you move an additional stick, when trying to pick up the one you’re aiming for, you’re out.)

Here’s where the sleight of hand comes in.  Once you have a couple of sticks in your possession, you can use them to help get others.

The best way of doing this is to use the point of one to press down on another stick, so that it slowly flips up, and you can pick it up without disturbing other sticks.

You can also see if you can carefully get a stick under another one which is propped, as a way of levering it out.

Scoring

The main aim is to have as many sticks as possible. However, there is also an element of scoring if you need it.

Without the tin to hand, I can’t remember all the scores, but suffice to say that the ones you have most of (orange?) score lowest.  There is only one black one – so that scores the highest.  I think the other colours are white and yellow.

Satisfaction

As a child, it can be hard to get into games if you can’t do the mental work fast enough, whether that’s strategy, spelling, or whatever else.  But you CAN lift up one stick when a grownup has tried and failed…and that is often enough.

I dare say you could make your own set fairly easily, if you had some dowelling rods. I have also seen sets which are plastic, though those don’t have as much weight – an element of weight is helpful (particularly when your opponent is trying to lever out a stick, and a number roll on top. Satisfyingly.).

Part of the fun is also the visual of the colours, the explosive shape of the sticks spreading out in different directions, and the sense of defying gravity – just a little – when you make your sticks move away from the rest of the bunch.

I may even go as far as trying to take a photo of the set I’ve got, just to show them off.

Which goes to indicate that, sometimes, Sore Losers just need to find what they can win at. And if the game is good to look at too? Bonus.

Game on: you know…

Well. It turns out that if you really want to avoid blogging, combining ongoing building work with someone being Ill All Week is a good way to go. Except that I didn’t want to avoid it (and being ill all week is NOT a good way to go).

But the illness had its upside – because we had been given a pack of UNO just before the bug struck. Junior player, continuing to build reading skills, thought that it was pronounced ‘you know’ (which is fair enough really – think university, unity and lots of other words where you say ‘you’ at the start).

Rather a lot of my blog posts seem to be referring to my personal history.  UNO is part of my family’s history – but not mine.  Because when I started full-time work in the first half of my gap year, and everyone else went on holiday together, they discovered UNO. And I wasn’t there.

Needless to say, they all know about UNO – but for some reason, they didn’t spread the cheer. (Probably my Sore Loser status at the time.)

My mum helps out in a local school, and whenever they have one of those ‘end of term bring in games’ type days, she always brings in UNO. I think she’s a bit of a shark when it comes to playing. We will wait and see, because we haven’t yet had a match.

Mum and Dad refer to UNO with a mock Essex accent, since it turns out they met a family from Essex on that particular holiday, and I think the family must have introduced them to the game.

But really, however you come across it – whether now, or in a couple of decades’ time – do. Do try it.  You’ll be hooked.

What kind of game is it?

UNO is a card game.  The box holds slightly over two normal packs’ worth of cards (106, if you want to know).

UNO doesn’t really need you to count – bonus.  You need to recognise numbers 0-9, and four colours, and that’s about it.  The pack suggests you need to be 7+ to play, but I think it could be possible at a younger age.

The main constraint, in fact, is whether a younger player can hold a larger number of cards in their hand.  But you can probably find a way for them to lay out their cards next to them, without you seeing them.

How do you play UNO?

Everyone starts with 7 cards.  (You could play with fewer to start you off, if you wanted.)
You have the rest of the deck of cards face down, and one turned up: that’s the card that sets the number and the colour you’re playing on e.g. blue 4.

Everyone takes it in turns put down a matching card. You can either match the colour e.g. you could play a blue 7, or you match the number e.g. red 4, which would then mean the next player has to put down a red card (or a 4).

If you can’t put down a card, you pick up another from the top of the deck.  If it will fit where play is up to, you can put it down straight away.  If not, you keep it in your hand.

Bit by bit, you get down to 1 card left.  You shout UNO at this point (ie ‘one’ card left). If you can play your final card on your next go, you go out, and win the game.

Shaking things up: the action cards

The other cards are easy to identify from the symbols.  There’s a miss a turn (a circle with a line through – like a road sign), and a reverse card (arrows – so the play goes the other way round the group of players).

There are coloured ‘pick up’ cards, where the first player puts down the card, and the next one has to pick up cards from the deck e.g.

Player 1: blue 3

Player 2: blue 2+ card

Next player picks up 2 cards, and play stays on blue.

Changing colour

There’s a card with 4 colours on – that allows you to change from the colour of cards you are on at the time.  This can be a bit of a relief, at times, if everyone has exhausted their supply of a particular colour.

For junior players, there’s one more card type that usually brings on cackles of glee before they play it.  The card shows four colours and +4 on it – that means you both set the new colour AND make the next player pick up 4 cards.

As we’re still newer to the game, I won’t put down a tactics section yet – maybe in a few days.

Ease of play

I just need to say that, even if you are down with flu/cold/stomach bug, you are still generally able to play this game.  You can play it in bed, or on the sofa, or at a table, as long as you have some kind of flat surface to put the cards onto.

All of this is great news for the person playing nurse, working out how to occupy the invalid. But I’m also thinking train journeys, or ferries, or any of those other times where there’s enough time and space to bring out a pack of cards.

Are we feeling better now? Thankfully, yes.  Are we hooked on UNO? Most certainly.

Game on: pairs

Call it pairs, call it pelmanism – it’s all about matching. And memory. And when it comes to memory, junior players often do pretty well.

This is another card game – one which needs a bit of space to spread. So this is one that’s less good for the train, OK for the floor (for a while), better for a decent-sized table.

How to play

As the name suggests, it’s all about making pairs. You have a pack of cards, and lay them all out face down.

Each player takes it in turn to turn over two cards.  If they match (and are therefore a pair), the player gets to keep them, and display them.

If they don’t match, the player turns them over again, and the next player has a go.

The more you can remember which cards went where, the easier it is to remember where the ‘other half’ of a pair is, when you turn up a new card, and the more pairs you can make.

The player with the most pairs wins the game.

Management

It can help to state a couple of rules at the start of the game to make it fair all round:

1) When you turn over cards, do it at a reasonably slow pace, making sure the other player(s) can see what you turned over. If you don’t, the other player loses out on seeing which cards have come up.

2) Try and make sure that the cards are put back down in the same places, if they don’t form a pair. If not, it can be very hard to remember where a given card is.

It is likely that the junior player may still win, even without these rules, given that their memory is less cluttered up than an adult player’s. But the rules make it a little fairer – and help junior players learn a little consistency and consideration for other players.

The art of cards

One of the nice aspects of pairs is that it lends itself to variety within packs of cards.  As you need lots of different pictures (two of each picture to make a pair), it can work well to have sets of similar items.

The set we have which I like the best is a transport related one.  For junior players who love all things vehicular, this is ideal, particularly if you win a pair of a favoured vehicle.

It can be harder to play, sometimes, when e.g. types of transport are similar, and you mistake which is which. However, the pictures in this set are particularly nice quality, so I enjoy the game (even when I lose).

You can also have pairs sets where the objects are more varied: a teddy, a plane, and so on. This means they aren’t as coherent a whole, but it can make them easier to remember. Swings and roundabouts, in terms of ease of winning.

Timing

The one downside of pairs is that it can take a while to play, and junior players’ attention spans can be limited. A couple of options here:

– reduce the number of sets of pairs you are playing with, so it’s quicker to complete

– allow for the cards to remain turned up, so everyone can see them.  This means it’s less about ‘straight’ memory, but a bit more about visual memory, which can be good if junior players are learning about patterns like letter formations or numbers.

It’s not automatic that the junior player wins – but they do particularly like doing so in this game. (You can even sneak in a little maths by asking them to count how many pairs they’ve won.)

Snap vs pairs

You’ll find that you can also use snap cards to play pairs with – this means you have more pairs to build up, but equally more chance of winning.

For those who are less keen on the fast pace of snap, but still like card games, pairs offers an easy game to play, where skill (memory) plays a part, but where strategy is not yet needed.

And if you get pairs of trains, tractors AND diggers, you might just make a small person’s day.

Game on: instructional writing

I’ve got into a habit of writing a round-up piece at the end of the month. Because I’m on catch-up, fitting in posts to dates after the event (confessions, eh?), I thought I’d slot one in mid-month instead. For a change.

There’s a whole load of instructional writing out there on the web. I’ve read a fair amount in the last few months, and I’m sure I’m not even starting to scratch the surface.

In the world of web, part of what makes sites good, from a user’s point of view (or at least it’s thought), is having something you can take away from reading a blog post. You don’t just want to read it – you want to be able to do something afterwards.

There is of course the video option as well, but as I’m not even really using photos in the blog at the moment, let’s just say that video is a step far too far for now. (Plus I’m interested in writing, not in learning how to make videos.  At least, not at this time.)

I started this month’s posts on games, partly because I’d reorganised my list of categories when starting to revamp the blog.  I had discovered that I had a category – games – which I was surprised to have. (You’ll have to read the post at the start of the month to see why the Sore Loser avoided games for so long.)

Writing, reading, food – no problem. Lots of posts. Why not rebalance things a little for the other categories? So I started writing. And discovered that this was just as much an exercise in writing – this time, in instructional writing.

We’ve all come across instructions that didn’t make sense. Trying to get your words right, so that people can follow the actions and come out with a finished product, is a hard job.

I’m not trying to do that, exactly, but I am trying to give you a sense of how a game unfolds. I’m also bearing in mind that no two game sessions are the same (even if it feels like they are, sometimes, playing Snap for the umpteenth time).

All of this is to say that it’s been a good challenge to try some instructional writing.  I’m not off to tell you how to make a lampshade any time soon (though Dan has been viewing a few posts and videos to see how it’s done), but I might do a little more food writing one day, and it might just help.

And part of the point, for me, is flexing my writing muscles.  Going in a particular direction, facing a writing challenge (or opportunity), and keeping going.

Every month I write, I find that things shift, usually around 10 days in.  My original reasons for writing about that topic may have been used up.

What is left is perhaps the real reason for writing that month: where the topic leads me. What I learn along the way. Trying on different writing styles is just part of that learning, at least for now.

Some blogs have very clear topics – even, just one.  I am still trying to find that topic – or at least, narrow down to a few.

Yet, while rolling out these posts, and finding a whole lot of memories along the way, I realise that, for now, I want to write broad, rather than narrow.

So if you’re sticking around for the ride – welcome.  I don’t quite know what’s coming next either.  But that’s OK too. Because I’m sure there’ll be some words to use, when it does.

Game on: Zoo Am I?

So you’re getting the hang of Animal Vegetable Mineral – but why not just stick to the animals? And wear silly hats on your head at the same time?

This is the premise of Zoo Am I? – the bonus being that you get to see the picture of the animal throughout, which makes it easier to keep answering the yes/no questions.

The kit

Zoo Am I? seems to be available in supermarkets – we got ours as a present.

The main part is a nicely illustrated set of animal cards. Most are easy to identify – some are more unusual species.

The extra bit is a set of coloured bands.  You snap them together (two bands makes a size to fit round your head) – they’re size adjustable, so they’ll fit kids and adults. The box comes with 4 sets of bands, to allow for up to 4 players.

The front of the band has a little slot where you can fit in one of the animal cards.

Getting ready to guess

Once you’ve got your headbands on, shuffle the animal cards and fan them out, face down. Each player picks a card for themselves, but doesn’t look at it.

It’s probably easiest for you to ask another player to take your card, and put it in the slot at the front of the headband.  This means that they can see your card, and you can’t.  Do the same so that all the players have their cards ready in their headbands.

Starting to play

Take it in turns to make guesses, as described in the Animal Vegetable Mineral post.  It helps to go from broad questions (‘Does it fly?’) down to more specific questions (‘Is it an owl?’).

The plus point is that the person answering the questions can see your card at all times. This helps with thinking about categories e.g. questions about colour, size, wings, legs, beak, claws.

You can also see your opponent’s card at all times, which gives you the same benefit.

Solving the puzzle

When you think you’ve asked enough questions to guess the animal, go for an identifying question (‘Is it a zebra?’) If you get it right, the other person has to confirm it.

If, after lots of guessing (and hopefully some clues, Big or otherwise), you give up, you can remove your card and see what the animal is.

Improving play

We’ve mostly played as twos, and this can help – you take it in turns to ask the questions, but you don’t have to wait too long until your go.

You learn possible questions from your opponents, too, so it can be good for grownups to model possible questions to junior players.

I’ve found that some of the more unusual animals are harder to guess, which can bring frustration for junior players.  One way round this is to put an elastic band round these cards, so they stay separate.

When you come to shuffle the cards, you therefore just use the ones which are straightforward to guess.

Conclusions

I’d say this one was a slow burner – Junior Player liked the headbands, liked the cards, found the question progression harder work. (I don’t really like the headbands, but I can see why they help.)

However, over time, this one has been requested quite a bit, and the quality of the cards, and variety of animals, means that it’s generally a good game to play.

I imagine that you could use an animal card as a template and make up your own cards, on a different topic, to extend the game in a different way.

It would probably help to choose a topic where there’s a lot of variety, as there is for animals, so that it’s easier to work out what the card is through your questioning.

And if all else fails, I’m sure you could make streamers and customise your own headband, for a craft take on it all…The choice is yours.