Accordion

Ages:  4-7 years old  
Number of players:  2
Materials: Deck of cards
Skill Practice:  Number sequencing, left-right visual scanning

Goal:  To gather the cards into the fewest number of piles

Set up:  

1. Deal 4 cards face up in a row from left-to-right
2. The remaining cards are placed in the center of the table and form a draw pile

Rules for play:

1. Determine who will play first.
2. The player scans the cards to see if any of the cards in the row match in either number or suit.  If it is a match, the player places the card on top of the match. Then the player selects a card from the draw pile.  The player determines if the card matches in either number or suit.  If it is a match the player places the card on top of the card. If the card isn’t a match, the player places the card in the row to start a new column.
3. The next player takes their turn following the same steps.
4. Play continues until no more matches can be made and the piles cannot be condensed.