Bell Playing Cards

3 4 5
2 D# b 6
1 C# b
D
D
E
E
F
7
C F# b
G

RI

Gold Yellow
Orange
RE ME
MI
Green
DI

Poppy RA FA

Red
DO
Mint FI

SE

8 0
9 13
G
G# b
10 11 12
c
A
A B
A# b
B

Teal S OL
Rest
Blue SI

red do
Purple
LE

Pink
LA TI
LI

Plum TE

Classic family card games

with a musical twist
prodigies.com
 Bell Playing Cards
Ring (Snap)
1. Lay out a bunch of cards face down on the table.
2. Take turns flipping over two cards at a time.
3. If the cards match, keep them and take another turn.
4. If the cards don’t match, flip them back over and it’s the next player’s turn.
5. Keep playing until all the cards have been matched.
6. The player with the most matches wins!

This game is a great way to help preschoolers improve their memory, concentration, and
matching skills. It’s also a fun and engaging activity that can be played with friends or fam-
ily members. Happy playing!

Bell Battle (War)

1. Shuffle the cards and deal them evenly to all the players.
2. Place your cards face down in a stack in front of you.
3. Together, say “1, 2, 3” and on “3,” turn over your top card and place it in the middle of
the table.
4. Whoever has the highest card wins the round and takes all the cards on the table.
5. If there is a tie, a Bell Battle begins! Each player puts down three cards (say “1, 2, 3”) and
on the 4th card, say “BATTLE” and place it faceup. Whichever Battle card has the highest
number wins, and that play takes all the cards on the table.
6. Keep playing until one player has all the cards.

To make the game more musical, you can set up your bells and play the winning bell sound
from each round. During the Bell Battle, you can also try playing the bells that you put
down for “1, 2, 3” and listen to the various combinations of bells ringing out together, be-
fore placing the Battle card.
Bell Memory
1. Lay out a bunch of cards face down on the table.
2. Take turns flipping over two cards at a time.
3. If the cards match, keep them and take another turn.
4. If the cards don’t match, flip them back over and it’s the next player’s turn.
5. Keep playing until all the cards have been matched.
6. The player with the most matches wins!

This game is a great way to help you improve memory, concentration, and matching skills.
For some extra musical reinforcement, play your bells as you flip over the cards and work
on listening to the differences in the sound of the notes. Happy playing!

Plum Slap
1. Shuffle the cards and deal them evenly to the players.
2. Each player should hold their cards in a stack, face down, in front of them.
3. The first player quickly flips over their top card and places it on the playing surface. Be
careful to go quick so both players see the revealed card at the same time.
4. The next player does the same, and so on, until a Plum Bell Bb (Jack) is revealed.
5. When a jack is revealed, the first player to slap the jack wins the pile of cards and adds
them to the bottom of their stack.
6. If a player slaps at a card that is not a jack, they must give one of their cards to the player
who placed the card on the playing surface.
7. The game continues until one player has all the cards.

This game is a fun and exciting way to improve your reaction time and concentration, as
well as learn about numbers. It’s a great activity for two players or bigger group play

You can also make it more challenging with additional slap conditions like...
• slap on doubles (two of the same numbers back to back, i.e. 7, 7)
• slap on sandwiches (i.e. 3, 6, 3)
• slap on pairs that add up to 10 (i.e. 6, 4)
• slap on Perfect 5ths (i.e. C and G, D and A, E and B etc)

Have fun!
Musical Games
Fastest Bell in the West
To set up the game, you will need 3 players and 1-2 sets of bells. 1 player is the Quick
Draw Master, and the other 2 players are the Marksmen. The Quick Draw Master shuffles
and then holds the deck of cards. The Marksmen get ready to play the bells.

1. The Quick Draw Master says “1, 2, 3” and on “3,” reveals the top card.
2. As soon as they can, the Marksmen rush to play the revealed note.
3. Whichever Marksman played the revealed note first wins the round and the card.
4. If Marksman rush and play the wrong bell, they must give back one card to the deck.
5. After the round is over, the Quick Draw Master counts “1, 2, 3” again and repeats the
game until all the cards have been played.
8. The Marksman with the most cards wins and is dubbed the Fastest Bell in the West!

This game is a fun and exciting way for preschoolers to improve their reaction time and
concentration, as well as learn about colors and matching. It’s also a great activity for group
play and can be enjoyed with more players if you have additional bell sets.

Finally, if you only have 2 players, you can take turns drawing from the top deck and
revealing the card (but it’s not quite the same this way).

Hurry & Harmonize

Hurry & Harmonize is a variation on Fastest Bell in the West.

1. Pick an interval to work with (3rds, 5ths, etc) and talk a little bit about that interval.
2. Then play “Fastest Bell in the West” as described above, but instead of playing just the
bell on shown on the card, play both that bell AND the interval harmonized above it (at the
same time).
3. Whichever Marksman plays both notes first wins.
1 2 3
C C# b
D D

DI

Red DO
Poppy RA Orange RE

4 5 6
D# b
E E F

RI

Gold ME Yellow MI
Green FA

7 8 9
F# b
G G G# b
A

FI SI

Mint SE Teal S OL
Blue LE
10 11 12
A A# b
B B

LI

Purple LA
Plum TE Pink TI

13 0 1
c C

red do Rest Red DO

2 3 4
C# b
D D D# b
E

DI RI

Poppy RA Orange RE
Gold ME
5 6 7
E F F# b
G

FI

Yellow MI
Green FA
Mint SE

8 9 10
G G# b
A A

SI

Teal S OL
Blue LE Purple LA

11 12 13
A# b
B B c

LI

Plum TE Pink TI
red do
0 1 2
C C# b
D

DI

Rest Red DO
Poppy RA

3 4 5
D D# b
E E

RI

Orange RE
Gold ME Yellow MI

6 7 8
F F# b
G G

FI

Green FA
Mint SE Teal S OL
9 10 11
G# b
A A A# b
B

SI LI

Blue LE Purple LA
Plum TE

12 13 0
B c

Pink TI
red do Rest

1 2 3
C C# b
D D

DI

Red DO
Poppy RA Orange RE
4 5 6
D# b
E E F

RI

Gold ME Yellow MI
Green FA

7 8 9
F# b
G G G# b
A

FI SI

Mint SE Teal S OL
Blue LE

10 11 12
A A# b
B B

LI

Purple LA
Plum TE Pink TI
13 0
c

red do Rest