🐘 The Grey Elephant Prediction

The Grey Elephant in Denmark for kids: the whole trick

Your friend does a couple of sums, turns the answer into a letter, and then freely thinks of a country, an animal and a colour. You haven't asked them a single question. Then you tell them there are no grey elephants in Denmark. It's a level 1 apprentice trick for ages 7 to 12 (grades 2nd–6th), takes 3 minutes to learn, and needs nothing but your hands. Flick, the shop's rabbit, reads every step aloud with a picture, so a child can follow it alone.

The secret

The sums always land on 4, which is the letter D. After that it isn't maths at all: almost everybody thinks of Denmark, then an elephant, then grey.

What you need

Nothing at all: this one is done with your hands.

How to do it

1. Say: think of a number from 1 to 10, and keep it to yourself.
2. Say: multiply it by 9.
3. Say: if that's two digits, add the two digits together.
4. Say: take away 5.
5. Say: turn it into a letter. 1 is A, 2 is B, 3 is C, and so on.
6. Say: think of a country starting with that letter, and keep it secret.
7. Say: take the second letter of that country and think of an animal starting with it.
8. Say: now think what colour that animal is. Then pause for a long moment.
9. Say slowly: isn't it strange… there are no grey elephants in Denmark.

Magic words to say

“Say the last line like you're reading it off a photograph only you can see. Slowly. Then say nothing at all and let them work out what just happened.”

Pro tips

• The long pause before the last line is doing half the work. Count to three in your head.
• Do this one for a group. Most of the room will have landed on the same elephant, which is somehow even stranger.
• Follow it with The Answer Is Always 3, which also needs nothing, and they'll be convinced you can do it all night.

If something goes wrong

Some people pick the Dominican Republic, or an eagle, or a dog. Smile and say "ah, you're a tricky one. Most people go to Denmark." Being almost right is its own kind of impressive.

Safety notes

• No fire, no flames and nothing sharp in a child's hand anywhere in the Magic Shop. Nothing ever goes in a mouth, a nose or an ear.

Why it works

Every multiple of 9 from 9 to 90 has digits that add up to 9, so after the digit-adding step everybody is on 9, and taking 5 away leaves 4. That's D. The rest is not maths: it's that Denmark is the D country almost everyone reaches for, E gives an elephant, and an elephant is grey.

What kind of trick is this?

🔮 Prediction. You knew all along, or you read their mind. Almost every trick ever invented is one of eight kinds, and knowing which one you're watching is how magicians work out how a new trick is done.

The skill it teaches: Outs: when things go wrong. Have a joke ready and a spare trick in your pocket. Perform it and it counts towards the Mind Reader badge.

Questions about the grey elephant in denmark

How do magicians read minds?

They don't hear your thoughts. Mind-reading tricks use maths that always lands on the same answer, a secret peek, or a code agreed with a partner beforehand. Magicians who do mind tricks are called mentalists.

Can you do magic with no props?

Yes, and those are the handiest tricks you can own, because you always have them with you. Number tricks need nothing but your voice, and some illusions need only your hands.

More from The Mind Reader's Corner

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• 🔮 The 1089 Trick (level 1, 5 minutes)
• 🎲 The X-Ray Dice Trick (level 1, 3 minutes)
• 🧮 The Calculator Trick (level 1, 3 minutes)
• All 80 magic tricks for kids, the easy ones by age, and how to put on a magic show