This Candy Cane Spoons Game is a festive twist on a classic card game. It’s a great activity for large groups or small gatherings – and it’s super easy to learn, which makes it fun for all ages! Grab your kids – it’s time to teach them how to play spoons!
We LOVE playing games as a family, and this Candy Cane Spoons Game ranks right up there with Roll a Snowman, as one of our favorite games for the whole family!
Candy Cane Spoons Game
I’ve been getting so sick of all the video games my kids are playing around here. (Fortnite anyone?!) So, in an effort to encourage more quality family time and less time playing video games, I implemented a fun rule in our home. (Insert my kids rolling eyes here.) For every hour of video games they play, they owe me an hour of board or card games. (Genius, right?!)
We’ve been playing Dominos, UNO, Pictionary and more! Last month I taught them how to play Spoons, and they absolutely LOVE it! I have 5 kids that range from 5 – 15 years, and this is one we can all play together. For the holidays, I thought it would be fun to play with candy canes and a festive deck of cards – and it was seriously SO MUCH FUN! If you’ve never played Spoons before, grab a deck of cards and get ready for some fun!
How To Play Spoons
Spoons is a fun party game you can play with a small group or large gathering. The object of the game is to pass cards in your hand one at a time while trying to collect four-of-a-kind. Once someone collects 4 of a kind, they grab a spoon from the center of the table, which prompts every other player to grab one too.
The catch: There is one less spoon than there are players, and the person left without a spoon loses! You can play elimination style and have each loser sit out as soon as they lose, or you can give out letters each time someone is without a spoon and once a player spells “S-P-O-O-N-S”, they’re out! The last player standing wins!
Materials Needed For The Game of Spoons
- A standard deck of cards (no Jokers)*
- Spoons, one fewer than there are players
* If you have a large group of players, you will want to play with multiple decks of cards.
Spoons Game Rules
- Arrange the spoons in the center of the table and deal four cards to each player. Players look at their cards, trying not to reveal their hand to other players. The draw pile is placed on the right side of the dealer.
- The dealer takes a card off the top of the draw pile so he has five cards in his hand. He removes 1 unwanted card and passes it face down to the person on his left.
- Play continues with each player looking at the cards they are passed, and then deciding which card to discard to the person on his left. Each player should only have 4 cards in their hand at all times. The goal is to get four of a kind.
- The last player (aka – the person furthest from the dealer) places his unwanted card into a trash pile at his side.
- Cards are picked up and passed quickly around the table until someone gets four of a kind and grabs a spoon.
- Once the player with four of a kind takes a spoon, everyone should grab a spoon too. The player who collect four of a kind first has a choice to make on how to grab a spoon –
- Being quiet or sneaky about grabbing a spoon will trick people who are paying attention to their cards and not the spoons on the table.
- A quick grab leads to a wild free-for-all and can get crazy, but fun!
- The player left without a spoon gets a letter to spell out S-P-O-O-N-S.
- If someone touches a spoon when they don’t have 4 of a kind, the round ends and that person is the loser. (Read below about a fun way to trick other people into grabbing a spoon.)
- If the draw pile runs out before any player gets 4 of a kid, pause the game and reshuffle the trash pile. The trash pile becomes the new draw pile.
- The winner is the last player remaining after all other have been eliminated.
Spoons Game Tips & Suggestions
- Switch dealers every round.
- Keep the game moving FAST by picking up and discarding cards as quickly as you can. DO NOT wait until the first card gets all the way around the table to pick up the next card.
- Try to trick other players by pretending to grab a spoon, even if you don’t have four of a kind. If another player thinks you are taking a spoon and actually grabs one for themselves, they lose the round! (Sneaky!!)
Game Variations
- Swap the spoons for candy canes and grab a festive deck of cards! I got mine on Amazon HERE.
- You can leave the Jokers in the deck to act as wild cards.
- My family likes to play what we call “Ultimate Spoons” – all the same rules, but the spoons aren’t in the middle of the table, they are in another room! (You’ve never seen so many people running and diving over furniture until you play this variation! But play with caution!)
Have fun!