State IQ™ Level 1-2
Players: Two teams with 1, 2, or 3 players per team
Determining who guesses first: Each team picks a GeoPlunge card without looking at that card in advance. Whichever team’s card has a statehood ranking closer to 1 will be the first guessing team for the first contest in this game. Alternate which team is the first guessing team for each contest.
Level 1:
Cards Used: GeoPlunge cards and Power cards. Shuffle the cards before the game begins. Place the used cards at the bottom of their decks.
Objective: This game is a series of state trivia contests. For each contest, each team has up to 3 guesses to guess the state held by its opponent. Each team receives one new clue before each guess, unless otherwise stated. A team earns 2 points for winning a contest, and teams receive 1 point each for a tie. Continue playing state trivia contests, one at a time, until one team wins the game. A team needs 10 points to win.
For each state trivia contest:
Step 1: Deal each team one GeoPlunge card face down. Each team may look at its card but should NOT show its card to its opponent.
Step 2: The dealer then turns over the top Power card in the deck. Each team will use the sequence of the letters A, B, and C in the upper right corner of that card to give clues about its GeoPlunge card to the other team.
A – first letter of the state Abbreviation, or Postal Code
B – 1 Border State (determined by the clue-giving team)
C – first letter of the state Capital
For example, let’s assume the dealer turns over the the Power card that has BAC in the upper right corner, see example. If that happens, when it is a team’s turn to give clues about the state it has, the first clue it will give will be one of the Border states of the state it has. Then, if necessary, the second clue it will give will be the first letter of the two letter state Abbreviation of its state, and then, if necessary, the third clue it will give will be the first letter of the name of the state Capital of its state.
If the Power card shows:
AAA: The first clue a team will give will be the first letter of the state Abbreviation of its state, the second clue, if necessary, will be the second letter of the state abbreviation of its state, and no further clue is provided but the guessing team, if necessary, will receive a third guess.
BBB: The first clue a team will give will be the name of one of the Border states of its state. The second clue, if necessary, will be the name of a second border state of its state. The third clue, if necessary, will be the name of a third border state of its state.
CCC: The first clue a team will give will be the first letter of the name of the state Capital of its state. The second clue, if necessary, will be the second letter of the name of the state capital of its state. The third clue, if necessary, will be the third letter of the name of the state capital of its state.
Step 3: The first guessing team has up to 3 guesses to try to guess the state of the GeoPlunge card in the other team’s hand.
Step 4: After the first guessing team correctly guesses the name of the state held by its opponent or has made three incorrect guesses, the teams switch roles. Use the same Power card for both teams. The second guessing team does not continue to guess once it has won or lost even if it has not made all three guesses.
Determining Who Wins a State Trivia Contest: Whichever team guesses the state of the GeoPlunge card in the other team’s hand in fewer guesses wins the state trivia contest and earns 2 points. If neither team guesses correctly or each team guesses correctly using the same number of guesses, the contest ends in a tie and each team receives one point.
Level 2:
Cards Used: GeoPlunge cards, Clue cards, Power cards, Cut-out card. Shuffle the GeoPlunge, Clue, and Power cards before the game begins and after each contest.
Objective: This game is a series of state trivia contests. For each contest, each team has up to three guesses to guess the state held by its opponent. Each team gets two new clues before each guess, unless otherwise stated. A team receives 2 points for winning a contest and it also has an opportunity to receive a bonus point (i.e. a third point) as described below. If a contest ends in a tie, each team receives a point. Play a state trivia contest one at a time until one team wins the game. A team needs 15 points to win the game.
Step 1: Deal each team one GeoPlunge card face down. Each team may look at its card but should NOT show its card to its opponent.
Step 2: The dealer then turns the top Power card in the deck face-up. Teams use the order of the letters A, B, and C in the upper right corner of that Power card to give clues from two Clue cards before each guess.
For example, if the Power card turned face-up has BAC in the upper right corner (see example) each guessing team will receive two Type B clues before its first guess, two Type A clues before its second guess, if necessary, and two Type C clues before its third guess, if necessary.
For Type A and B clues, there usually will be options for which clue is provided as described by the Clue card. If the clue-giving team is required to show its opponent the state flag, use the cut-out card to hide all of the information with the exception of the state flag.
The dealer turns over 2 new Clue cards before each guess. Used Clue cards are placed at the bottom of the deck.
Step 3: The first guessing team has up to 3 guesses to try to guess the state of the GeoPlunge card in the other team’s hand.
Step 4: After the first guessing team correctly guesses the name of the state held by its opponent or has made 3 incorrect guesses, the teams switch roles. Use the same Power card for both teams. The second guessing team does not continue to guess once it has won or lost even if it has not made all three guesses.
Determining Who Wins a State Trivia Contest and Whether that Team Receives the Bonus Point: Whichever team guesses the state of the GeoPlunge card in the other team’s hand in fewer guesses wins the state trivia contest and earns 2 points. That team receives a bonus point (i.e. three points total) if it guessed correctly on its first guess. If neither team guesses correctly or each team guesses correctly using the same number of guesses, the contest ends in a tie and each team receives 1 point.
Other variations to the game you may want to try:
- When first learning the game, have a U.S. map, and a sheet listing the states and capitals, available to the players OR when giving a clue during a Level I game, provide the entire abbreviation, the list of all borders states, or the name of the capital, instead of just partial information
- When giving the first clues, the clue-giving team also tells the guessing team the time zone of the state of the clue-giving team’s card
- Play for a different point total (e.g., play to 15 points in Level 1 for a longer game)
- Play for a period of time rather than for a point total, and whoever is winning at the end of that period of time wins
- Allow fewer or additional clues and/or guesses
- Provide additional information about the state card not on the clue cards: (landmark located in that state, sports team in that state, “Home of _____ University, etc.)
- Only use cards of specific regions (e.g., only states that are primarily in the eastern or central time zone.)
- Only use cards of states that begin with certain letters (e.g., only use cards where the state names begin with letters A through L)
- See “Other Learning Activities with GeoPlunge” for additional ways to use the GeoPlunge cards