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Sociable Cards printable sheet
Take a pack of cards and remove the Jacks, Queens and Kings.
Shuffle the remaining cards, and then lay the whole pack face up on the table in a snake, like this one:
Place four different coloured counters on the first four cards in the snake. Then move each counter foward the number shown on its card (Aces count as $1$). Keep moving each counter until it can't go any further without going off the end.
Watch the video below to see a demonstration:
Did your counters all finish on different cards?
Repeat the experiment a few times.
How often did all the counters finish on different cards?
How often did they all finish on the same card?
Can you explain your results?
Challenge
Find a way to arrange the cards so that all four counters finish on different cards.
Can you do the same with five counters?
This problem is based on a card trick called Kruskal's Count
All you need for this game is a pack of cards. While you play the game, think about strategies that will increase your chances of winning.
This is a game for two players. Does it matter where the target is put? Is there a good strategy for winning?
Can you beat Piggy in this simple dice game? Can you figure out Piggy's strategy, and is there a better one?