I was playing Euchre on Saturday night when I suddenly had a grand revelation. I was explaining to my partner the odds of being able to take the tricks needed to have won, and why I didn’t bid what I had. It was that exact moment that I realized: I understand the math behind the game.

Now, I am no math genius. I failed algebra 4 times in high school, and failed college algebra twice. Needless to say, math is not my strong suit. However, because I have been playing cards since I was a wee lass, there are quite a few math concepts I understand well and apply.

I learned addition and subtraction by keeping score playing 500 Rummy. I got really, really fast at adding by playing Cribbage. I also learned how to count cards at a glance by playing Spades, and I also learned how to figure odds of whether or not a card would take the trick with both Spades and Euchre.

Playing cards does not just teach math skills, though, it teaches valuable social skills- learning how to be a gracious winner, and how not to be a poor loser. You can teach them that a cheater never wins. (Hopefully your kids are not skilled at the art of cheating like my 13 year old is. It’s hard to catch my 13 year old at it!) It teaches that sometimes the cards you are dealt suck, but hang on and you can start again with new cards.

Plus, if you play poker with your kids, you can win back all the money you gave them for allowances, and teach them that gambling isn’t a good idea. That is, if you don’t have card  sharps in your family like, again, my 13 year old.

Play cards with your kids! It’s one of the few things I can think of that are both educational and fun.

[Photo Credit: Milca]