Egg Carton Sowing Game

What you need

• Egg carton, 1, with twelve cups
• Dried beans or buttons, 48
• Bowl, 3

How to do it

Grown-up prep: Choking risk: beans, buttons and pebbles are small, so keep this game away from little siblings and young children, and count the pieces back into a bowl at the end.

1. Put one bowl at each end of the carton as a store.
2. Drop four pieces into every cup.
3. Choose one cup on your side and scoop up all its pieces.
4. Sow the pieces one at a time into the cups to the right.
5. Drop one in your own store, but skip your friend's store.
6. If your last piece lands in your store, take another turn!
   Ask: Which cup could you pick to land your last piece in your store?
7. If your last piece lands in an empty cup on your side, capture the opposite cup.
   Ask: What do you think will happen if your last piece drops into an empty cup?
8. Stop when one side is empty, then count each store.
9. Play again! Can you plan an even cleverer first move?
   Ask: What did you learn about planning your moves that you will try next time?

Play it again

• Five seeds: start with five pieces in every cup for a longer game.
• Team up: two players on each side and take turns choosing the cup together.
• Backwards garden: sow to the left instead of the right and see how your plan changes.