Snap (card game) facts for kids
Snap played with a single pile: two eights in a row is a "snap"
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| Type | Matching |
|---|---|
| Players | 2–8 |
| Skills required | Quick reactions |
| Cards | 52 |
| Deck | French-suited |
| Play | Clockwise |
| Card rank (highest first) | A K Q J 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 |
| Playing time | 5 minutes |
| Random chance | Low-Moderate |
| Related games | |
| Beggar-My-Neighbour, Slapjack | |
Snap is a super fun and fast-paced card game. Players deal out cards and then quickly try to spot matching pairs. It's all about having quick reactions! You can play Snap with cards dealt into separate piles for each player, or sometimes, especially with younger kids, everyone plays into one big pile in the middle.
Snap is similar to other quick card games like Egyptian Ratscrew. In China, the game called Snap is usually what we know as Slapjack.
Contents
How to Play Snap
Setting Up the Game
To start, you need a standard deck of 52 playing cards. All the cards are dealt out face-down to the players. Each player gets their own stack of cards. Try to make sure everyone has about the same number of cards.
Playing Your Cards
Players take turns in a clockwise direction. When it's your turn, you take the top card from your face-down stack. Then, you flip it over and place it face-up next to your stack. This creates a new pile of face-up cards for each player.
Shouting "Snap!"
The main goal of Snap is to be super quick! If two cards on top of any of the face-up piles are exactly the same, you need to be the first person to shout "Snap!" For example, if there's a 7 of hearts on one pile and a 7 of clubs on another, that's a match!
The player who shouts "Snap!" first gets to take both of those matching face-up piles. They add these cards to the bottom of their own face-down stack. The game continues until one player has collected all the cards. That player is the winner!
What is a Snap Pool?
Sometimes, two players might shout "Snap!" at the exact same time. Or, if a player shouts "Snap!" by mistake when there isn't a match, their own pile of cards might go into a special "snap pool."
If matching cards also match the cards in the "snap pool," players can shout "Snap pool!" instead of "Snap!" The first player to do this takes the entire pool. If multiple players shout "Snap pool" at the same time, the new matching cards are added to the pool.
Different Ways to Play
Single Pile Snap
A simpler way to play Snap, especially for younger kids, is to use just one shared pile. All players take turns placing their cards onto this single pile. If two cards placed one after another on this pile are identical, players shout "Snap!"
In this version, players might even race to slap the central pile when they see a match. This makes it very similar to the game Slapjack.
Special Card Packs
Snap is often one of the first card games taught to children. Because of this, you can often find special decks of cards made just for Snap. These decks might feature popular cartoon characters or heroes from movies.
Snap in Pop Culture
Exploding Snap
In the famous Harry Potter books, like Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Harry and his friends play a magical version of the game called "Exploding Snap." In this game, some of the cards can actually explode randomly while you're playing!
Goon Show Mentions
In an old radio comedy show called The Goon Show, one of the characters, Eccles, would sometimes randomly yell "snap." He might do this even during a poker game or while talking on the telephone!
Snap Around the World
In countries like Germany and Austria, the game of Snap is known by different names. People there might call it Schnipp-Schnapp or Spitz, pass auf!
