This math magic trick will wow kids and adults alike. I have got to be honest, I have no idea how this works, but it is amazing and it will shock the kids every time!  Plus, it gets them thinking about math in a fun enjoyable way.

Supplies for Math Magic

• A deck of cards
• A friend
• A pencil
• A piece of paper

Set Up

Remove the tens and face cards from the deck. Then, shuffle the deck.

How to perform Math Magic

Ask your friend to take card from the deck.  Tell them not to show you or tell you the card, but memorize the number on it. Then have them place the card face down on the table.

Now you take one card from the deck, do not show it to your friend, memorize your card and lay it face down next to your friends card.  Place it to the right of your friends from your friends point of view

Give your friend a piece of paper and a pencil.  Tell them to do the following without showing you the answer.

•     Double the value of the card
•     Add 2 to that number
•     Multiply the results by 5

While your friend is doing their math, you need to do some as well. Subtract your number from 10 (example: if your card is 8, your answer is 2)

When your friend has figured out there math give them an additional step. Have your friend subtract you number (in this example 2) from the number they got after doing their math. Now flip over your friends card and then your own.  The two digits of the number will be the number your friend gave you!

More Math Games Like This

If you like math magic you will like fantastic 4, a challenging math game where kids are asked to find equations from a set of cards.

You may also like multiplication war, a twist on the traditional war game. Multiplication wars challenges children to solve the equation before their opponent.

Check out this list of 15 games in 15 minutes by scholastic. I especially like shaving equations. Give each kid a scoop of shaving cream and have them write the answers to equations in the cream.