The Families Magic Trick (Version 1)
Recently some teachers asked me about a magic trick I sometimes do with students.
1 The Secret: This trick relies on a clever setup and a bit of misdirection. You secretly arrange the cards in a specific order before you begin.
The Setup (Do this secretly before showing the trick):
Choose four "families" of cards: For simplicity, use the Ace, 2, 3, and 4 of each of the four suits (Hearts, Diamonds, Clubs, Spades). This gives you a total of 16 cards.
Arrange the top eight cards: Take one card from each family (e.g., Ace of Hearts, Ace of Diamonds, Ace of Clubs, Ace of Spades). Place these on top of the deck in any order. Then, take a second card from each family (e.g., 2 of Hearts, 2 of Diamonds, 2 of Clubs, 2 of Spades) and place these on top of the first four. So, the top eight cards will have one of each rank (Ace, 2) from each suit.
The remaining eight cards: The order of the remaining eight cards (the 3s and 4s of each suit) doesn't matter for the trick. Just place them below the top eight.
2 The Performance:
Introduce the "Families": Show the 16 cards to your audience and explain that you have four "families" – the Aces, the Twos, the Threes, and the Fours. Briefly show one of each rank to illustrate.
The Deal: Explain that you are going to deal the cards into four piles, and each pile will magically end up containing one complete family.
The First Round of Dealing: Deal the cards face down, one at a time, going around in a circle to create four piles. Deal through all 16 cards.
The Collection: Pick up the piles one at a time. Crucially, when you pick up each pile, place it on top of the pile you picked up before it. Do not shuffle or change the order of the cards within each pile. This action maintains the secret arrangement.
The Second Deal: Explain that you're going to deal the cards again in the same way. Deal the 16 cards face down into four new piles, going around in a circle.
The Reveal: Turn over the top card of each of the four piles. To everyone's surprise, each pile will now have all four cards of one rank (e.g., the first pile will have all the Aces, the second all the Twos, and so on)!
3 Why it Works:
The initial arrangement ensures that when you deal the cards the first time, and then stack the piles on top of each other, the cards of the same rank become separated by exactly three other cards. The second deal then brings those separated cards together into individual piles.
ESL Language Focus:
Vocabulary: family, Ace, Two, Three, Four, Hearts, Diamonds, Clubs, Spades, pile, deal, top, bottom, reveal, magic.
Instructions: "Watch carefully." "I am dealing the cards." "Pick up this pile." "Place it on top." "Now, let's reveal the magic!"
Sequencing words: "First, I arrange the cards. Then, I deal them into four piles. Next, I pick up the piles... Finally, I reveal the families!"
Describing actions: "I am shuffling the imaginary cards." (Even though you're not actually shuffling during the performance). "The cards are going into different piles."
Best wishes,
Michael.
1 The Secret: This trick relies on a clever setup and a bit of misdirection. You secretly arrange the cards in a specific order before you begin.
The Setup (Do this secretly before showing the trick):
Choose four "families" of cards: For simplicity, use the Ace, 2, 3, and 4 of each of the four suits (Hearts, Diamonds, Clubs, Spades). This gives you a total of 16 cards.
Arrange the top eight cards: Take one card from each family (e.g., Ace of Hearts, Ace of Diamonds, Ace of Clubs, Ace of Spades). Place these on top of the deck in any order. Then, take a second card from each family (e.g., 2 of Hearts, 2 of Diamonds, 2 of Clubs, 2 of Spades) and place these on top of the first four. So, the top eight cards will have one of each rank (Ace, 2) from each suit.
The remaining eight cards: The order of the remaining eight cards (the 3s and 4s of each suit) doesn't matter for the trick. Just place them below the top eight.
2 The Performance:
Introduce the "Families": Show the 16 cards to your audience and explain that you have four "families" – the Aces, the Twos, the Threes, and the Fours. Briefly show one of each rank to illustrate.
The Deal: Explain that you are going to deal the cards into four piles, and each pile will magically end up containing one complete family.
The First Round of Dealing: Deal the cards face down, one at a time, going around in a circle to create four piles. Deal through all 16 cards.
The Collection: Pick up the piles one at a time. Crucially, when you pick up each pile, place it on top of the pile you picked up before it. Do not shuffle or change the order of the cards within each pile. This action maintains the secret arrangement.
The Second Deal: Explain that you're going to deal the cards again in the same way. Deal the 16 cards face down into four new piles, going around in a circle.
The Reveal: Turn over the top card of each of the four piles. To everyone's surprise, each pile will now have all four cards of one rank (e.g., the first pile will have all the Aces, the second all the Twos, and so on)!
3 Why it Works:
The initial arrangement ensures that when you deal the cards the first time, and then stack the piles on top of each other, the cards of the same rank become separated by exactly three other cards. The second deal then brings those separated cards together into individual piles.
ESL Language Focus:
Vocabulary: family, Ace, Two, Three, Four, Hearts, Diamonds, Clubs, Spades, pile, deal, top, bottom, reveal, magic.
Instructions: "Watch carefully." "I am dealing the cards." "Pick up this pile." "Place it on top." "Now, let's reveal the magic!"
Sequencing words: "First, I arrange the cards. Then, I deal them into four piles. Next, I pick up the piles... Finally, I reveal the families!"
Describing actions: "I am shuffling the imaginary cards." (Even though you're not actually shuffling during the performance). "The cards are going into different piles."
Best wishes,
Michael.
