Educational Card Games for Kids

Card games aren't just for grown-ups. Not only can a single deck of cards become hours of fun, but they can be educational, too. Read on to learn how to best introduce your child to the wonderful world of card games!

Benefits of Playing Card Games for Kids

Cognitive development

Most card games require players to remember what cards have already been played. This helps to anticipate their opponent's next move. It's a great opportunity for self-learning as your child finds their own way to win.

Social skills

It's not a great feeling when you lose or are about to lose a game. Cards provide a low-stakes environment to teach your child sportsmanship. Even small things like waiting for opponents to play their turn teaches patience and respect for others.

Motor skills

Some card games, like Slap require players to quickly slap their hands down when someone plays a Jack. It requires high dexterity and hand-eye coordination.

Educational value

Most card games can be great early introductions of numbers and shapes for your child. A standard deck of cards isn't just good for displaying numbers, but the different colours and suits provide patterns to sort by.

Top Card Games for Kids

When picking a card game to play with your child consider their age, the number of players required, how long the game will take and educational value. Start with simple games like Go Fish and slowly introduce more complex ones over time. Be patient and encouraging when introducing a new game.

Scopa

Number of players: 2 or 4

Recommended Age: 8+

This game is typically played using Italian cards that can be purchased online. For Scopa, the Jack, Queen and King face cards represent the numbers 8, 9, and 10, respectively. If you remove those number cards from a standard deck, you can also use it.

The game can be played against another person or in teams of two. Each player is dealt three cards, with four cards placed face up in the middle of the table.

Players take turns capturing cards from the table. If a player possesses a card in their hand that is equal to one or more cards on the table, they can capture those cards. If no cards can be captured, the player must leave one of their cards face up on the table. Captured cards are placed in a separate pile for each player, or if playing a team game, there is one pile per team.

Once players' hands are empty, three more cards are dealt out per person. If a player captures all remaining cards from the table, then they get "Scopa!" which counts for one point towards the player or team's total at the end of the round.

Once the entire deck is dealt, that marks the end of the round. There are a few ways points are scored. Scopas are one point. The player or team with the most captured cards gets a point.

Whoever captured the most diamond cards gets a point. Whoever captured the 7 of diamonds gets a point. Whoever gets the most sevens gets another point. The points are added up and another round can be played until a player or team reaches a predetermined point goal.

Here is a complete list of the rules.

President

Number of players: 2+

Recommended age: 8+

President is one of the easiest card games. There is no limit to how many people can play at a time. The game's short rounds also allow new players to get dealt in quickly.

The dealer deals one card at a time until the entire deck is dealt. One player begins by playing one of their cards. This can be a single card or a set of cards with an equal number or face (for instance, three fours or two kings).

The next player has to play a card or set that is higher, pass, or 'burn' the pile. Twos are 'burn' cards. If the last player played a single card, and then you play a single two, you discard the pile and start a new one. When everyone passes on a pile, it is automatically discarded, and the last player to play gets to place another card.

The first person to be out of cards gets the rank of president, the second person is vice president, the second to last person is vice bum, the last person is bum, and all players in between are neutral.

These ranks are applied in the next round, where the president gets to take the bum's best two cards, and the vice president takes only one of the vice bum's best cards. There is no end to the game. You may choose to record how many times a player is president and declare a winner over a predetermined set of rounds.

Get the complete rules here.

Speed

Number of players: 2

Recommended age: 6+

As the name suggests, this game is fast all and about hand-eye coordination. It can be tough at first, but with practice, even young players can master the skills to win. The dealer first gives each player a hand of five cards and a draw deck of 15 cards. On the table in between the players, deal two cards face up beside one another and beside each of these cards deal a pile of five cards.

There are no turns in this game, as players continuously place cards on top of the two center piles. Players place cards that are either higher or lower than what is on top of the pile. Aces count as the highest and lowest card so that the cards create a continuous loop numerically.

Once a player's hand of five is all played, they take up to five cards from their draw deck. If neither player can play, each player simultaneously flips over one of the cards from the outside piles of five onto both center decks. If the outside piles of five on the table are finished, shuffle the center piles and use them to replace the outside piles. The first person to play all of their cards wins!

Here is the complete set of rules, accompanied by an instructional video!

Old Maid

Number of players: 2+

Recommended age: 4+

Remember playing this classic card game back in primary school? Well, it turns out that Old Maid is more than just a fun pastime.  It's also an educational tool that helps sharpen your child's matching, pairing, and number recognition skills.

To play, simply take a standard 52-card deck, remove one of the four queens, and you're left with 51 cards. After shuffling the cards, deal them out to each player. The game progresses as players match and discard pairs of cards until the deck is exhausted. But beware – the player left holding the odd queen (which has no matching pair in the deck) at the end of the game is the Old Maid.

Here is the complete set of rules.

Crazy Eights

Number of players: 2+

Recommended age: 4+

This card game has some tricky rules at first, especially for younger kids. But once everyone understands how to play, your family will enjoy it for hours on end.

The objective of this card game is simple: be the first player to empty your hand. But here's the twist—all of the eight cards in the deck hold the power to change the game, letting you pick a new suit that everyone must follow.

To play Crazy Eights, each player starts with five cards, and the remaining deck forms a pile in the centre, with one card flipped over next to it. Once it's your turn, you must play a card that matches either the number or suit of the top card. If you can't, you draw from the pile until you find a match or have drawn three cards. The first player to discard all their cards wins the round, and the one with the lowest score after several rounds is the winner.

Here is the complete set of rules.

War

Number of players: 2+

Recommended age: 5+

War is not only a fun card game for older kids, but it also helps them develop crucial skills like taking turns, recognizing numbers, and making comparisons.

To play, divide a card deck evenly, with each player receiving 26 cards. Then, both players simultaneously reveal the top card from their pile and place it face-up in the center. When a player draws a higher card than their opponent (e.g., three versus nine), they claim both cards and add them to their pile.

However, when two cards of the same rank are drawn (like queen versus queen or six versus six), the battle becomes a war. Each player then reveals one card face down and one card face up. The player with the higher card wins all six cards. This cycle continues until one player claims the entire deck.

These are the complete set of rules.

Slapjack

Number of players: 2+

Recommended age: 4+

Slapjack is more than just a fun game – it also helps kids develop important skills in kids, such as hand-eye coordination, counting, math skills, plus focus and concentration.

To play this game, the deck is divided amongst each of the players, and then, each player takes turns placing one card face up in the center. When a jack appears, the first person to slap it first wins that pile. The ultimate goal is to collect all 52 cards in the deck by being the quickest to identify and slap each jack as it is played to the center.

Here is the complete set of rules.