You hand somebody six cards covered in numbers and ask them to think of any number from 1 to 60. They hand back every card their number appears on. You tell them the number straight away.
🌟 Level 1: Apprentice
⏱ 10 minutes to learn
🔮 Mind reading
🎒 Ages 7+
Works by itself, or one simple move. It works the first try.
What you need
The secret
Get ready, before anybody is watching
Make the six cards before the show. Card 1 starts with 1, card 2 with 2, then 4, 8, 16 and 32.
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.
You hand somebody six cards covered in numbers and ask them to think of any number from 1 to 60. They hand back every card their number appears on. You tell them the number straight away. It's a level 1 apprentice trick for ages 7 to 12 (grades 2nd–6th), takes 10 minutes to learn, and needs 2 things you already have. Flick, the shop's rabbit, reads every step aloud with a picture, so a child can follow it alone.
The secret
Add up the first number on each card they give back. That is their number. The cards are built so every number from 1 to 60 appears on exactly one set of them.
What you need
An index card, or a sheet of paper
A marker
Get ready, before anybody is watching
Make the six cards before the show. Card 1 starts with 1, card 2 with 2, then 4, 8, 16 and 32.
How to do it
Write the six six index card out with the marker, each starting 1, 2, 4, 8, 16 and 32.
Hand all six six index card over and ask them to think of a number from 1 to 60.
Ask them to give back every card their number is on.
Add up the first number on each one and say the total out loud.
Magic words to say
“Six cards. Think of a number, don't tell me, and give me back the ones it's hiding on. That's all I need. Numbers aren't very good at hiding, it turns out.”
Pro tips
Add the corner numbers as they hand the cards over, not at the end. By the time they stop you already know.
Make the cards once, neatly, and keep them. This is the trick to carry in a pocket.
If somebody works out the secret, show them how to make their own set. It is a lovely afternoon and they will teach somebody else.
If something goes wrong
If the total looks wrong, ask "are you sure it's on all of those?" and let them check. A missed card is the only way this goes astray.
Safety notes
Only from the front.
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 number can be built out of 1, 2, 4, 8, 16 and 32 in exactly one way, which is how computers count. A card holds every number that needs its first number to be built, so handing back the right cards is the same as telling you which pieces the number is made of. Adding them puts it back together.
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:Your magician name. Every magician has a stage name and a style. Perform it and it counts towards the Mind Reader badge.
Questions about the secret number cards
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.