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Well my regular trips to a friend's house involve me doing magic with her 8 year old daughter, who has now become obsessed with magic. I've taught her a few tricks now and she's very good.

I've already taught her how to use an ID and a simple way of stacking a deck. Her misdirection skills are excellent too.

The trouble is a lot of my stuff is mental magic and is quite 'clever' and whilst she's very intelligent she is not going to make up magic squares in her head.

I'd like to carry on teaching her and it would be nice not just to do sponge balls and all the usual kids stuff. She has a magic set and none of it impresses her now that she can pretend to read the future and people's minds!

Any thoughts on something a bit different that a youngster will get to grips with?

I don't know what would be good for an 8-year-old but you could try her on basic card sleights, e.g. Biddle move, Glide - using only the Biddle move and an ability to hold a pinkie break you can do the Biddle trick, which is one of the best ones out there.

EDIT: Oops, sorry I didn't read the title of the post. (Idiot me ).

Kati

Kati I think he's looking for some simple mentalism tricks for the little one.

How about buying a copy of Karl Fulves 'Self-working Mental Mircales" or whatever it's called? (It's definitely Karl Fulves, but don't know the exact title as I don't have it to hand)

I'm sure there are some simple effects in there that she'll be able to grasp.

I've got that somewhere, I'll dig it out and try and find something suitable.

Thanks

"Around the World Colouring Book" is great to to perform to an 8 year old and also to teach them. The basic handling is very simple and the effect is more than effective!

Now that seems great. I can only see it on US websites, any thoughts on who might sell it in the UK?

Thanks

Unfortunately that item is produced by Magic Makers Inc and there's quite a bit of controversy over they way they allegedly copy other people's tricks and sell their own versions. A lot of UK Magic suppliers have stopped dealing with them over this and other more commercial issues so you may have some difficulties in finding one on sale in the UK.

I have one I dont use anymore. PM me if you are interested

Delighted!

Well tonight shows what forums such as this are all about. I ask a question, I get some help and dear Chris offers me a book for sale. Purchase completed, I take 'the around the world colouring book' to my 8 year old friend and she takes to it better than I expected.

I wish I had filmed her performing for us. She was amazing. She casually presents one of her colouring books, asks us to pick out a picture and reads our minds to tell us the one we are looking at. She then asks us to pick a picture with writing on - it could be a country, city or monument and she does the patter to get to the correct answer so naturally!

This trick won't work for adults but she will amaze her friends and the magic she is learning is doing wonders for her confidence so a big thankyou to those who helped with my question and especially to Chris for the book.

Roland

Roland,

Try an ESP deck and the simple effects which come with it. If that wets your appetite go for Max Maven's close up DVD.

I only started with ESP cards about a month ago and they knock the socks off folk, without fancy sleights.

Thanks. I use ESP cards a lot, though I am desperately trying to move away from cards as it all seems too much like a trick.

I try some ESP card stuff with her though - good idea.

I've got the Max Maven collection, its really great, though I'm not sure what to make of him. Does he take himself seriously or he is taking the mickey?

A good mentalism trick for children to do (my 10 year old son does this) is the Sketch-O-Magic.

The prediction is placed in an envelope and then a book containing hats/hair, eyes/noses and mouth/chin is flicked to make up many different faces.

The member of the audience is given the free-will choice and having made a face from the combination on offer they open the sealed envelope to find that the prediction was correct.

This gives a great opportunity to get patter and routines working and is something that a ten year old can really make their own and do stuff with their peers.

here's a site that sells it http://www.tricksfortruth.com/shop/details.asp?prodid=TFTC022&cat=4&path=

Hope this helps,

Vic

Roland wrote:I've got the Max Maven collection, its really great, though I'm not sure what to make of him. Does he take himself seriously or he is taking the mickey?

You can't tell from the jokes he and Eugene Burger do?



My take is that he has a very professional attitude to magic and takes that seriously, but that his performing persona is very much tongue-in-cheek.

Does he take himself seriously or he is taking the mickey?

Having seen him at a workshop and then a stage performance recently, I think the answer is 'both'. When he's lecturing he's a straightforward and very amusing instructor, he freely admits that almost all of what he does is pure presentation and very often he has no idea of selected cards/thoughts etc until well beyond the halfway mark in some routines. When in MM attire he pokes fun at himself by asking where else could he dress like he does and not only avoid arrest but get paid for it? A great performer and certainly one I'd pay serious money to go and see.

Congrats on the 8 year old friend's performance, I think we ought to chart her career from now on with regular updates!

How about Animental ( think that's its name ), for an adept 8 yr old ?
Piers.