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7 Secret Tricks Page | Rave Reviews | TOC | The Men Behind the Book!
A REALLY BIG DEAL
 Send a special message by creating
a secret code with an ordinary deck of cards. Present the cards to your child, then help decipher
the words that have been lost in the shuffle.
CREATE YOUR DECODER DECK
Shuffle a full deck of cards. It doesn't have to be a full deck. This is the perfect opportunity to use that pack that's missing a few cards!
Write down the order of the cards from top to bottom. Draw suits or write initials to make your list quick and easy to read.
WRITE YOUR SPECIAL MESSAGE
 Wrap a couple rubber bands, lengthwise, around the cards to hold them tightly in place. Use a thin marker to write on the sides of the deck.
For a longer message, cut the deck into separate piles, wrap them with rubber bands, and write a portion of the message on each stack.
HIDE YOUR MESSAGE
 Shuffle the cards so the words become a pattern of random lines. The message can only be read by returning the cards to the order you
have written down.
DELIVER DAD'S DECODER DECK
The Direct Method
Give your child a card box containing the scrambled deck along with the code-breaking card order so she can rearrange it right away.
 The "Discovery" Method
Give your child a single card with instructions for finding the next card written across the face. Each card found will have directions for locating the next. (Look in the cookie jar; Check under your pillow; Go to the dictionary and look up the word "card.") The final card discovered will lead your child to the location of the code.
HELP DECODE THE MESSAGE
Help your child crack the code by stacking a couple of cards. Find the first card on the list and place it face-up. Find the second card on the list and place it face-up on the first. Follow suit until your child has caught on, then hand over the cards so your child can continue stacking.
Sit back and watch your child smile with wonder as your words magically appear. When the message is deciphered, put the cards in a special place, then work together to create a decoder deck with a special message for mom.
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