Start by teaching your child 3 simple but impressive math tricks. Trick 1 (Mind Reader): Ask someone to pick a number, double it, add 10, divide by 2, then subtract the original number. The answer is always 5! Trick 2 (Age Guess): Have someone multiply their age by 2, add 5, multiply by 50, subtract 365, add the number of days until their next birthday, then add 115. The result's first digits are their age, last digits are days to birthday (this one's more complex—use for older kids). Trick 3 (Magic 1089): Ask someone to pick a 3-digit number with decreasing digits (like 742), reverse it (247), subtract the smaller from the larger (742-247=495), reverse that result (594), and add them together (495+594). The answer is always 1089! Demonstrate each trick with your child following along. They'll seem magical at first.

Now shift from learning to performing. Math magic is as much about presentation as the trick itself. Teach your child to present like a magician: build suspense ('Pick any number—any number at all!'), give clear instructions ('Now double that number'), and reveal the result dramatically ('I predict your answer is... five! Am I right?'). Practice performing each trick on family members. Your child should be the one giving instructions and revealing answers, not you. Encourage personality: some kids will be dramatic and over-the-top, others will be calm and mysterious—both styles work. Practice handling mistakes: if someone messes up the math during the trick, calmly help them redo the step. The more your child practices, the smoother and more confident their performance will be.

Now for the real magic: understanding the math behind the tricks. Sit down with your child and work through each trick algebraically (or with concrete numbers for younger kids who aren't ready for algebra). Take the Mind Reader trick: if the number is X, doubling gives 2X, adding 10 gives 2X+10, dividing by 2 gives X+5, subtracting X leaves 5. No matter what X is, you always end up with 5! Walk through each trick this way, showing the pattern. For younger kids who don't know algebra, use a specific number and track it through the steps visually: '7 doubled is 14, plus 10 is 24, divided by 2 is 12, minus 7 leaves 5. Let's try 3: doubled is 6, plus 10 is 16, divided by 2 is 8, minus 3 leaves 5!' Help your child see that the math forces the result every time.

Time for the big performance! Invite family members, friends, or neighbors to watch your child's math magic show. Set up a performance space (living room, backyard, or even a video call for distant relatives). Your child presents 2-3 tricks, using their best showmanship. They can choose whether to reveal how the tricks work afterward ('Now I'll show you the secret!') or keep the audience guessing. Let your child run the show—they're the magician. After each trick, the audience applauds and reacts with appropriate amazement. If someone wants to know how a trick works, your child explains the math behind it (if they're comfortable). The goal is to make your child feel like a confident performer who made math fun and impressive.

Wrap up by discussing what your child learned. Talk about how math has hidden patterns and structures that make tricks like this possible. Math isn't just about right answers on worksheets—it's a tool for creating, performing, and impressing people. Ask your child: 'What was your favorite trick? What surprised you most about how they work?' Challenge them to invent their own math trick using the principles they learned: pick some operations (add, subtract, multiply, divide) that cancel out or always result in a set number. Test the new trick on family. Celebrate that your child now sees math as playful and powerful, not just something for school. They've learned that math can be magic, and magic can be math.