How to Play the Classic Game of Go Fish for Kids

Playing go fish is a great way for the whole family to spend some quality time together. It’s a simple game that can be learned quickly, and it’s a lot of fun. Plus, it’s a great way to teach kids about numbers and counting. So how do you play Go Fish for kids?

Here’s how to play Go Fish for kids in 8 steps:

So if you are looking for a fun, easy card game for kids, look no further than go fish! As go fish is a classic game that can be enjoyed by players of all ages. And now that you have an idea of the key things of go fish, keep reading to learn more in detail so you and your kids can all play go fish!

How to Play Go Fish for Kids

If you’re planning on playing Go Fish with kids, there are a few things you should know.

1. The game is best for kids ages 4 and up. Younger children may have trouble understanding the concept of “fishing” for cards.

2. You’ll need a regular deck of 52 cards. Aces are high and twos are low in Go Fish. You can remove the jokers if you’d like.

3. Have everyone sit around a table or play on the floor. This is so that everyone can reach the middle of the card pile, also known as the ocean.

4. Decide who will go first. The youngest player usually goes first.

5. Have each player draw seven cards to start the game. The rest of the cards are placed face down in the middle of the group to create the “fish pond.”

6. Take turns asking another player for a card that you need. If they have it, great! Take the card and add it to your hand. If they don’t have it, they’ll tell you to “go fish” and you’ll have to draw a card from the pond. If you happen to get the card you asked for, you can go again.

7. When you run out of cards, simply take seven more from the fish pond.

8. The game is over when one player has all four of a kind (four threes, four kings, etc). The player with the most sets of four wins!

Supplies

To play Go Fish, you will need a standard 52-card deck of playing cards. You can also use a special Go Fish deck, which has the same number of cards but with different pictures on them. If you are using a regular deck of cards, remove the jokers.

Adults vs. Children

One of the most popular children’s card games is Go Fish. The rules are fairly simple and can be easily learned by kids of all ages. However, there are some slight variations in the rules when played between adults and children.

For instance, when playing Go Fish with kids, it is typically recommended that players use a standard 52-card deck plus two jokers. Adults playing the game may choose to use a smaller deck, such as a 36-card deck. Another difference in the rules is that when playing Go Fish with kids, wild cards (jokers) can be used in place of any card. This is not the case when playing with adults, where jokers cannot be used. Finally, the number of cards that can be asked for when making a request is different between the two versions of the game. When playing Go Fish with kids, players can typically ask for up to four of the same card. However, when playing with adults, players can only ask for one or two of the same cards.

These are just a few of the ways that the rules of Go Fish card game can differ between kids and adults. So, when playing the game with someone of a different age group, be sure to adjust the rules accordingly!

Objective

The object of the game is to collect as many “books” of 4 cards as possible. A book is 4 cards of the same rank, such as 4 kings, 4 queens, or 4 aces. The object of the game is to collect as many pairs of cards as possible. To do this, players must take turns asking other players for specific cards. If the player who is asked has the card, they must give it to the asker. If they don’t have the card, they must say “Go Fish.” The asker then draws a card from the deck and hopes to get a match. When all of the cards have been matched up, the player with the most pairs is the winner!

Number of Players

The game is played with 2-6 players. To start, each player is dealt 7 cards face down from the deck. The remaining cards are placed face down in the middle of the players, to form a “pool.”

Process

The player to the dealer’s left starts the game. On their turn, they ask one of the other players for a specific card by rank (e.g., “Give me your kings”). If that player has any cards of the requested rank, they must hand them over. The asker then gets to take another turn. If the player who was asked doesn’t have any cards of the requested rank, they say “Go Fish.” The asker then draws a card from the draw pile and ends their turn.

If a player draws a card of the rank they asked for, they get to take another turn. A player can also ask for a rank that they already have in their hand. When this happens, they must draw a card from the draw pile anyway. The game ends when one player has no cards left in their hand, or when the draw pile is empty. The player with the most sets of 4 wins.

Tips for Go Fish

– Encourage kids to use mathematical language when asking for cards.

• Example: “Give me your kings” rather than “Give me your king cards”
• This will help them practice their number recognition and counting skills.

– If a child is having trouble remembering what cards they’ve already seen, you can allow them to keep their cards face up in front of them.

– If a child is struggling with the game, you can simplify it by removing the sets of 4 requirements and just playing until one player has no cards left in their hand.

Playing Go Fish is a great way for kids to practice their number recognition, counting, and memory skills. So break out a deck of cards and give it a try!

Additional Tips for Playing

– It can be helpful to agree on a “rank order” for the cards before starting the game. For example, you could agree that Aces are high, Kings are second-highest, and so on down to Twos as the lowest rank. This way, when players are asking for specific ranks of cards, there is no confusion about what they mean.

– When asking for a specific rank of card, a player must already have at least one card of that rank in their hand. For example, if a player asks for “fives” but does not already have any fives in their hand, they must immediately draw a card from the pool as their punishment.

– If the pool runs out of cards, play continues as normal without drawing from the pool. Players simply keep asking each other for specific ranks of cards until somebody can collect a book.

– If a player asks for a rank of card and another player has more than one card of that rank, the second player can give all their cards of that rank to the first player. For example, if Player 1 asks Player 2 for “sixes” and Player 2 has two sixes, Player 2 can give both of their sixes to Player 1.

– The game can also be played with more than one deck of cards if there are a lot of people playing. Simply shuffle the decks together and deal out 7 cards to each player as usual.

Summary

This classic card game is a great way to spend some quality time with the kids. Go Fish is a game of chance and skill, and it’s perfect for players of all ages. So, next time you’re looking for a fun family activity, why not try to go fish? It’s a great way to spend some quality time together and it’s sure to bring some laughs. Plus, it’s a great way to teach kids about numbers and counting. Give it a try!

Matt McWilliams

See Full Bio