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How to Explain a Game

Four short lessons for starting a game with people who have never played it: say how you win, show one turn, start early, and change one rule out loud.

For grown-ups, from what MentorDojo teaches children at Spark & Anvil.

  1. Lesson 1Say how you win first
  2. Lesson 2Show one turn
  3. Lesson 3Start before everyone understands
  4. Lesson 4Change one rule out loud
At the table · 3 or more, any ages

Teach a game in sixty seconds

You'll need: Any game in the house and a timer.

  1. Pick a game one person knows and the others do not.
  2. The teacher has sixty seconds: how you win first, then one ordinary turn with the real pieces.
  3. Start a practice game straight away; explain the rest when it comes up.
  4. After the game, the youngest player teaches it back to the table, in their own sixty seconds.

Print the guidebook (all lessons + the table activity) →