Materials
basket of books about magicians and easy tricks
poster of magicians
dress-up clothes such as suit coats, fancy dresses, top hats, and white gloves
small table
box of small tricks
stuffed rabbit
child-size screen or room divider
colored sheer scarves
magic wands
playing cards
extra chairs for the audience
tickets
Instructions
1. Since a picture concentration game can reinforce ideas covered in every unit
of study, collect a supply of pictures that relate to each of your thematic
units. You will need two copies of each picture.
2. Cut out 18 pictures (nine matching pairs) for each thematic unit.
3. Glue each picture to a 3" x 5" index card.
4. Cut a large piece of tagboard into a 17" x 22" piece and divide it into a grid of
18 spaces (three rows of six spaces).
5. Laminate the cards and the tagboard for durability and cut them out.
6. Put a rubber band around each set of 18 and store them in the detective
learning area until you are working on that theme.
7. To use, randomly spread one set of cards facedown on the grid. Arrange
them into three rows of six cards.
8. The players take turns turning over two cards. If they match, the child keeps
the cards and may have another turn. If the cards do not match, the child
returns the cards to their original place and waits for another turn. By
memorizing where certain pictures are located (initially as a result of trial
and error), players have a chance at clearing the playing area.
9. Continue play with the next child until all the matches have been found. The
child with the most cards is the winner.
10. Once children understand how to play, make the cards available for pairs or
small groups during center time.
