Taco Cat Goat Cheese Pizza

 

I'm not a game manufacturer, or even a game creator. But I know something about game boxes. If the box looks fun or interesting, it will get my attention, and the kids'. I guess it's like eating - you eat with your eyes first. I have had games where I have left the box in my cart and brought only the pieces up to the table because I didn't think the box gave off a very fun vibe. Like this one. With this name, and the above design, I would not even be curious enough to look inside. Maybe that is why they changed the box above, to the box below. There is still something about the name that is kind of ho hum to me, but at least they added some graphics and colors. It got my attention.

Taco Cat Goat Cheese Pizza reminds me of a game called Slap Jack, something that we played as kids. When you find Taco Cat Goat Cheese Pizza on Amazon, they have a video of adults playing, but I have a hard time thinking of Taco Cat Goat Cheese Pizza as a game that will keep the attention of adults because of its simplicity.

Did you notice the repetition of the name in the above paragraph? Get used to it, you're going to hear it a lot more as you play the game. Taco Cat Goat Cheese Pizza consists of 64 cards with eight different designs - 11 each of taco, cat, goat, cheese, pizza, and 3 each of gorilla, narwhal, and groundhog.

Object:

Be the first person to get rid of all your cards.

Set up:

Shuffle the cards and deal them evenly, face-down, between the players. 

Play:

Players take turns placing a card, but all players play when it is time to slap. Play moves quickly. The first player takes a card from their deck, turns it over quickly and puts it in the middle of the table while saying "taco". The next player quickly covers that card with theirs while saying "cat". The next person does the same while saying "goat". The game keeps going, with each player saying the next word in the name of the game. If at any time the card that is put down matches the word that is said, all must quickly slap the deck. The person who was the last to slap must take all the cards and place them on the bottom of their deck. That person now starts up again by placing a card and saying "taco" (starting over with the game name). If one of the special cards come up, you must do this before you can slap the deck:

• Narwhal - All players must slap their hands above their head to form a horn.
  
• Gorilla - All players must beat their chest
  
• Groundhog - All players knock on the table with both hands.
  

Play continues until someone runs out of cards. That person must continue to slap stacks until they are the first person's hand down on a stack. Then they win. In the meantime, if they are last to slap, they have to join back in the game, putting down cards to get rid of them. 

Try this:

• Use this game to start a session if you are looking for deep pressure input to the hands, such as before a writing task.
• Practice saying the game name several times until everyone has it down. If necessary, start slow by just naming two, then when that is learned, name three, and so on.
• Play a game where you only say three or four words, such as taco, cat, pizza. Take out the extra cards or leave them in, it won't matter either way.
  
• Work on hand skills by practicing shuffling and dealing cards.
• Deal the cards by holding the deck in your non-dominant hand and pushing them off the top, one at a time, with your thumb. Pick the card up with the dominant hand to pass it to the individual.
• Smoosh. If you cannot hold and shuffle the cards efficiently, place them on the table, face down, and push them around in a big pile, smooshing, for about a minute to mix them. Then gather them up and deal. Or have everyone pick their own cards.
  
• Use the deck to practice sorting cards from a pile. Pick any two cards, let's say cat and taco, and remove all of those two images from the deck. Set the rest of the deck aside. Shuffle the cards of those two images and place them, face-up, in a stack in front of the individual. Place a face-up taco on the left and a face-up cat on the right. Player separates and lifts the top card from the stack, without toppling the stack and sorts it to the correct side. Keep going until the whole deck has been sorted into the two piles. 
  
• Work on auditory memory, visual discrimination, in hand manipulation, sequencing, processing speed, executive functioning skills, manual dexterity, play and leisure exploration and participation, socialization skills, process skills

In the box: 64 cards

What's That Smell?

What's That Smell? Brace yourself!

What is it that draws a person to a game with a name like What's That Smell? Would I buy it for a party at my house? Probably not. Would I buy it to work on sensory goals with kids? I would definitely take a look. You know how some kids can be... the grosser the better.

Instructions in a nutshell - Start the timer, each player sniffs a different mystery whiff card and tries to guess the scent. Each player passes their card to the player on their left and does it all over again until the smell round is over. Best sniffer wins! Wow, this game stinks!

What's That Smell consists of 48 mystery whiff cards and four stank cards. The 48 whiff cards fall into seven different categories. Your job will be to whiff a card and decide what it is and which category it will fall into. Here are the seven categories and an example of smell from each:

• Tutty fruity - bubble gum
  
• Sweet stuff - almond paste
  
• Spice it up - chili
  
• Bloomin' fresh - cut grass
  
• Smoke factor - barbecue
  
• All things chemical - floor cleaner
  
• Just plain stinky - bad breath
  

I took a whiff of several to see if they smelled like they were supposed to and I would say yes, pretty much. In addition to those 48 cards are 4 stank cards. Each stank card is sealed in its own individual plastic bag so the smells won't waft out and overwhelm everything else in the box. Here are the scents: diaper blowout, hot chunky vomit, extra old toe cheese, and smothered in b.o. (body odor). Ranking them, the one I thought would be the least offensive to me was the "smothered in b.o." So I braced myself and took a quick, shallow whiff. It's really something how a quick whiff of a scent can conjure up an instant memory. I was transported back to my 8th year. My cousin and I were exploring an old shed behind my grandma's house. We found, among other things, a pinball machine. As cool as that was, we didn't stay long because the cats had been in and out and it smelled strong like a cat box. Not exactly b.o., but bad enough. 

In the box are also 48 whiff strips (to scratch on the card to release the scent), six cardholders, and a pad of score sheets. Below is a pic of what is in the box:

 

Open card showing name of scent and point values.

 

There are very specific instructions on how to use the whiff sticks and how to store your cards to keep the scents from mixing in the box and to extend the life of your game. Instructions also offer three suggestions for resetting your sniffer between whiffs. If you have good olfactory memory, I would guess that after playing this game a time or two the mystery cards won't be much of a mystery to you any more.

BONUS - You can also download a free What's That Smell app. You don't need it to play, but it has some fun options like ways to earn extra points, a timer, and a Reek Cam to record the loser in slow motion as they take three big whiffs of a stank card.

BTW - For another mystery sensory game, try Bean Boozled by Jelly Belly. Based on taste instead of smell, with lots of surprise flavors. Check out my post about it HERE.

Object:

Score the highest points after the round ends.

Set up:

Give each player a mystery sniff card, a card holder, a score sheet, and a whiff strip. Players place their whiff cards in their holders. Set up a timer for 15, 30, or 45 seconds. Use the app as a timer if you have it.

Play:

Start the timer. Each player uses their whiff strip to release the scent on the card. Players each record on their sheet what they think the smell is, which of the seven smell categories it falls into, and a funny memory associated with the smell (if they have one) (see score card above). Identifying the smell correctly is worth 5 points, but there is also a second answer that is less specific that is worth 3, and other options on the app, if you use it. My guess is that you will need the full 45 seconds to do all of this. When the timer goes off, everyone passes their card with holder to the person on the left. Start the timer again and repeat. Keep going until all cards have made the round. If you are playing with three people, there will be three cards to the round. If you are playing with six people, there will be six cards, etc. When the round is over, tally the scores and the winner gets to pick a stank card for the loser, who must take three big whiffs. Have some smelling salts standing by.

Try this:

• Skip the game, just use the mystery whiff cards and whiff strips for scratching. Pick a few cards that the individual is likely to encounter in their daily routine. Show the name on each card and ask the individual to rate them from best (I would hesitate to use the word "worst"). Why attach a label to something that may not be that offensive? Start whiffing from best and work your way through the samples. 
• Don't force or surprise anyone with an offensive smell in therapy. 
• Ask the individual to help you choose the smells you will work with in therapy. Common, least offensive smells will be a good place to start.
• Present a smell briefly, then work your way up to longer exposure times.
• Have the real thing available, if you have it, like grass, chili, sunscreen. Compare the smells, are they similar? Engage other senses with the real thing.
  

In the box: 48 mystery whiff cards, 4 stand cards with bags, 6 card holders, 48 whiff strips, score pad