We've been playing a new-to-us game that one of my friends taught my kids . . . it's called TRASH . . . and it's so fun that even Zoe wanted to play with us. I thought you might like to know how to play it, too. It'd be a good school break, snow day, weekend and winter evening kind of game. It's kid and adult and any-age friendly. (Isaac is 5 and Maddie is 7 and they both "get it" and really like to play.) So, how to play? Here goes.
- Grab a deck of cards. We use UNO cards. Regular playing cards would work, too.
- Shuffle said cards.
- Deal the cards. Lay out two rows of 4 cards in front of each player.
- Set the rest of the cards in the center of the playing space - this is the draw pile.
- The player to the left of the dealer (or the youngest player, or whoever's turn it is to go first) grabs the top card from the draw pile. If it is a number 1-8, that player puts this card face up in the corresponding number position in front of him and picks up the card that was lying there. He then looks at the card he just picked up. If it is another number card, 1-8, he puts that card in the proper position.
He continues this until a card he picks up is a number he already has face up in front of him or the card he picks up is TRASH (anything other than a number 1-8). He discards the TRASH, and it is the next player's turn. - The next player can either take the card the previous player discarded (if it was a number 1-8), or take a card from the draw pile. This player plays until she must discard - either a number she already has, or TRASH.
- Play around until someone has this winning layout (with or without a wild card thrown in):
Variations :: *Sometimes, with the UNO cards, we lay out two rows of 5 cards each and play 0-9.
*You can designate wild cards as well - again, with UNO cards this is easy - these can be played for any number, and can also be replaced and used elsewhere (if I used a wild for a 4, but I come up with a 4, I can replace the wild and use it for another number I need).
Happy playing!