Speaking, Reading, PresentationSkills

Created by: BCHK ELT Network Team

Class Type Primary
Aim(s) To learn a magic trick
To learn the language for presenting a magic trick
To present the trick in front of an audience

Time 3 x 45 minute lessons plus the presentation

Assumed Knowledge How to spell the numbers 1 - 10

Materials/Preparation The teacher has to learn the trick before the class, see instructions
below

Packs of cards – enough for each group of 3 or 4 students to have

their own pack

Handouts as below

The Trick

Shuffle a pack of cards, then count off the top 13 cards to form a new smaller pack. Fan out the
cards for the students to see that they are a random selection of cards and suits. Holding the
cards face down, the teacher spells out the first card, i.e. Ace. For each letter A-C-E the teacher
takes the top card and puts it at the bottom of the thirteen cards. The teacher then turns over the
next card (i.e. the fourth card) and puts it face up on the table. The card is an Ace. Do the same
again for the next card, i.e. two, spell out T-W-O, placing each of the three cards at the bottom of
the pack and turning over the next card. It’s a two! Continue to do this spelling out each card until
you have all 13 cards laid on the table in the correct order.

How it’s done

Before the class starts, remove one of each card (using a mixture of suits) and arrange them in
the following order with the three at the top: Three, Eight, Seven, Ace, Queen, Six, Four, Two,
Jack, King, Ten, Nine, and Five. Put these 13 cards on the top of the pack.

In front of the class, shuffle the cards ensuring that you don’t touch the top 13 cards, so you’re
only actually shuffling the bottom half of the pack. Count out the top thirteen cards and then fan
them out face up for the students to see. Square up the cards and hold them face down. Now
spell out the word Ace and for each letter take the top card and put it at the bottom of the pack.
After spelling it out take the next card, i.e. the fourth card, and place it face up on the table. The
card is an Ace. Continue like this in the following order: Ace, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, Jack, Queen,
King. When you finish the cards should be laid out in the correct order on the table.

This trick and the sentence to help children remember the order of the cards (see lesson two) are
taken from the Kidzone website: http://www.kidzone.ws/magic/index.htm

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Procedure - Lesson One

1. Ask students if they know any magic tricks. If a few do, ask them to come to the front of
the class to show you. Alternatively, ask individual students to describe any tricks they’ve
seen on tv.

2. Pre-teach or elicit the names of the playing cards, i.e. Ace, Jack, Queen, King, the
numbers and also the suits – hearts, diamonds, clubs and spades.

3. If the suits and the non-number cards are new to your students it might be fun to play a
game to practise the vocab. If space permits, play a board race game. Stick a picture of
each card (Ace, King, Queen, Jack) and each suit (hearts, diamonds, clubs and spades)
on the blackboard. Divide students into 4 groups and have them stand in their team lines
in front of the board. Give the first person in each team a flyswatter1. Call out the name of
one of the cards and the students with the flyswatters run to the board to swat the card you
called out. The first player to swat the right card gets a point for their team. If you don’t
have flyswatters, students can just touch the card with their hands.

If space doesn’t allow for board races in your classroom, organise the students into teams
whilst sitting down. Get students to arrange their chairs so the team is sat in a circle
around a table. Give each team the Ace, King, Queen, Jack cards for each suit (so a total
of 16 cards). Get them to spread them out face up on their table. Call out one of the
cards, e.g. Jack of Hearts and one person from each team finds the correct card and holds
it up in the air for you to see. The first team to show the correct card get a point. Make
sure the students take it in turns to hold up the card.

4. Do the trick in front of the students. Try to get them as involved in the trick as possible, by
getting them to count to 13 when separating the top 13 cards, asking them what card will
be next and spelling out the numbers with you at each stage in the trick.

5. Do the trick again step-by-step and elicit each stage from the students. Pre-teach any
words they don’t know as you’re doing it, e.g. shuffle. Ask questions like ‘What do I do
next?’ to elicit each stage, for example, ‘You shuffle the cards.’ ‘You count the top 13
cards.’ ‘You show the audience the cards.’ Encourage the use of present simple rather
then present continuous to describe each step rather than describing what you are doing.
Write down each step on the board as students say it and get them to copy the procedure
into their notebooks.

6. Ask students how they think you do the trick, encouraging any ideas however silly. Don’t
let them know whether they are right or wrong at this point.

1
Flyswatter – a square net fixed to a handle used to ward off flies.
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Procedure – Lesson Two

1. Elicit from students what you did last lesson.

2. Do the trick again eliciting from students each step, e.g. ‘You shuffle the cards.’ ‘You count
the tops 13 cards.’

3. Now, show the students how the trick is done. Write the sequence of the top 13 cards on
the board and demonstrate each step of the trick.

4. Copy handout one below onto A3 paper, cut up into strips and shuffle. Make enough
copies for one per each group of children in the class. Students have to re-arrange the
strips so that they complete the rules for the trick. Feedback with the whole class to check
everyone has it in the correct order.

5. Get the students to copy the instructions for the trick into their notebooks.

6. Elicit ideas from the children about how they can remember which order to put the cards in
before the trick. Tell them there’s a sentence that help them and write the following on the
board underneath the sequence of numbers:

3 8 7 Ace Queen 6 4 2 Jack King 10 9 5

________ _______ _______ years ________ there lived a _________ that was
_________ __________ years old. She had _________ children. One named
_________, the other named _________. Jack was _________ years old and King was
__________ years old and they were both in Primary ___________.

Get the students to copy the sentence into their notebooks and fill in the gaps with the
correct number/word.

7. Allow students time to practise the trick in pairs or groups of three. Monitor as they are
doing it and as you walk around the class, ask students to explain what they’re doing to
each other and to you to encourage use of the language.

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Procedure – Lesson Three

1. Give your students 10 minutes to practise the card trick again in small groups. Encourage
them to explain what they are doing as they go along so that they’re practising the
language.

2. If possible, it would be great at this point to show your students an clip from a tv magic
show that demonstrates the language magicians use and their interaction with the
audience.

3. Do the trick again to the class emphasising the dialogue a magician might have with the
audience, for example, ‘Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. For my next trick I’m going
to astound you with my ability to make the card I spell out be the next card in the pack.’
See handout two for an example dialogue.

4. Give handout three to the students and ask them to fill in the gaps. Check the answers
together as a class.

5. Drill the sentences to ensure your students are confident saying them.

6. Give each student a copy of the dialogue and in their groups get them to practise the card
trick again, using the dialogue as they do the trick. Allow plenty of time for this.

7. Homework is to practise the trick, using the dialogue, to their family so that they are ready
for their presentation next lesson.

Presentation

The presentation can be done in a number of ways, for example, if you have the co-operation of
your colleagues, you can send students to other classes. If this isn’t possible another idea is for
students to set themselves up on tables around the playground during the lunch break or play time
and show any interested students the trick. This in some ways would be better as they can do it
numerous times whereas visiting another class would mean only doing it one time.

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 ELT Network Lesson Plans

Magic Trick Presentation

– Handout One

Take one of each card from the pack of cards so you have an Ace, 1, 2,
3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, Jack, Queen and King.

Arrange the cards in the following order with the three at the top: 3,
8, 7, Ace, Queen, 6 4 2 Jack, King, 10, 9 and 5.

In front of your audience, shuffle the cards but don’t move the top 13
cards.

Count out the top 13 cards and fan them out, face up, for your
audience to see.

Square up the cards and hold them face down.

Now spell out the word Ace and as you say each letter take the top
card and put it at the bottom of the pack.

After spelling it out take the next card, i.e. the fourth card, and put it
face up on the table. The card is an Ace.

Repeat the last step for each of the cards in this order: Ace, 2, 3, 4,
5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, Jack, Queen, King.

When you finish the cards should all be on the table in the correct
order.

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 ELT Network Lesson Plans

Magic Trick Presentation

– Handout Two

Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. For my next trick I’m going to
astound you with my ability to make the card I spell out be the next card
in the pack! But, first you have to learn the magic word. Does anyone
know the magic word? (ask around the students, but they probably won’t
know) The magic word is Abracadabra! Can you say it? (encourage the
audience to say Abracadabra a few times until they are comfortable
saying it) So, I’ll shuffle the pack and take the top 13 from the pack.
Sir, look at these cards please, and tell everyone if they are normal
cards. (fan out the top 13 cards for someone to see.) Ok, so let’s start
with the Ace. Excuse me, (add a name of someone in the audience) how
do you spell Ace? (A-C-E.) Now, let’s spell that together everybody – A-
C-E. (encourage everyone in the audience to spell along with you.) Now,
what’s the magic word? (encourage all the audience to say the word
together as you turn over the next card which is the Ace). What’s the
next card (add the name of someone else) ? How do you spell two?
(encourage all the class to spell out two as you count the cards) And
what’s the magic word? (encourage all the class to shout out
Abracadabra as you turn over the two card).

Continue with the trick asking members of the audience how to spell
each number and asking them for the magic word each time you turn
over the next card in the sequence. At the end of the trick, say:

Now that’s magic!

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 ELT Network Lesson Plans

Magic Trick Presentation –

Handout Three

Fill in the gaps in the sentences, using the words in the box.

card shuffle spell magic (x2) Gentlemen

Abracadabra trick start together

1. Good afternoon, Ladies and _________________ .

2. For my next ______________ ….

3. Does anyone know the ____________ word?

4. The magic word is ______________!

5. So, I’ll ___________ the pack.

6. Now, let’s ___________ with the Ace.

7. How do you ___________ Ace?

8. Now, let’s spell that ____________ everybody.

9. What’s the next __________?

10. Now, that’s __________!

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