“Dixit” is a creative card game where players use abstract illustrations to create stories or hints. The storyteller selects a card and gives a cryptic clue, while other players choose cards that match the hint. Everyone then votes on which card they believe belongs to the storyteller, and points are awarded based on correct or misleading choices.

Skill focus

Primary Skill Focus

• Critical thinking

Complementary/Secondary Skill Focus

• Empathy 
• Creativity
• Resilience
• Emotional Awareness

Age group	Student number	Duration
6-10 years old	3-6 children	30-50 minutes

How to play – brief game rules

Setup:

1. Each player receives 6 cards.

Gameplay:

2. 1 player chooses a card (without showing it) and says a word, sound, or story that, in their opinion, fits the image on the card. This person is the storyteller.
3. The other players choose a card from their hand that they think also matches the description.
4. All chosen cards are shuffled and laid face up on the table. The players (except the storyteller) then vote for the card they think belongs to the storyteller.

Scoring:

• If everyone or no one guesses the storyteller’s card: the storyteller gets no points, but the other players each receive 2 points.
• If only some players guess the correct card: the storyteller and the correct guessers each receive 3 points.
• Players receive 1 extra point for each vote cast for their own card.

Winning the Game:

• The first player to reach a certain number of points wins.

Indoor: Set up tables or mats on the floor where small groups of 3–6 players can comfortably sit around the cards 

This game promotes critical thinking because it engages students in analysing, interpreting, and evaluating-core aspects of critical thinking. This happens in several ways:

1. Interpreting abstract and metaphorical images

• The cards in Dixit are intentionally vague and symbolic. Students must think about what an image could mean and how that meaning connects to a given word, phrase, or story.
• This involves weighing multiple possible interpretations and selecting the most appropriate one.

2. Reasoning and making connections

• To make a good choice, students need to connect concepts: 
• How does this card fit the storyteller’s hint?
• Which cards are others likely to choose?
• This encourages logical thinking and perspective-taking.

3. Evaluating and strategizing

• Students must not only assess their own interpretation but also anticipate how others will think.
• They ask themselves questions like: 
• “Is my hint too easy or too hard?”
• “Which card will most players pick?”
• This requires strategic and reflective thinking.

4. Problem-solving in a social context

• The game includes a competitive element: scoring points by making accurate choices.
• Students must analyse information, compare options, and make decisions under uncertainty.

Conclusion: Dixit promotes critical thinking because students interpret information, consider multiple perspectives, make connections, and develop strategies based on ambiguous and limited clues.

As a result of the activity, learners:

• Understand the value of ambiguity and open-ended thinking, recognizing that multiple interpretations can coexist and that uncertainty is part of the creative process.
• Understand the importance of strategic thinking, as predicting other players’ choices adds an extra layer of complexity to their decision-making process.

• When this game is played on the playground, it can be played as a “market version”: all players place their chosen card on the ground, including the storyteller. Then, the students must look at all the cards and stand by the card they think is the correct one.

Points = the number of students standing by a card.

• The story with this card can be:

Listen carefully, and you will hear something.The sea whispers secrets.I hear something you cannot hear.

Dixit cards

Guiding Questions – When Choosing a Card

• Why did you choose that particular card for this description?
• What do you think the other players will think when they see your card?

Guiding Questions – When Voting

• What makes you think this is the storyteller’s card?
• Which other cards did you consider? Why?

• Challenge: Limited creativity, too little variety in ideas or difficulty making connections.
  Tip: Before the game starts, you can have a kind of “warm-up” or exploration phase.
  In a group, let the children collect all kinds of stories or sounds for a specific card, so that during the game they have a broader range of inspiration. You can also turn this into a mini-game: students vote for the person who told the most fun story for a given card.
  Everyone chooses a card from their own stack and tells what they think could go with that card (or sound). This gives the students inspiration for all the possibilities.
• Challenge: Students have difficulty choosing.
  Tip: The storyteller can give an extra word, or you can start with a sound first, then a word, and finally a full story.
• Challenge: Sometimes students take a long time to decide. 
  Tip: You can introduce time pressure, for example with a song, a countdown clock, or an hourglass. When time is up, they must go to their chosen card.

Beginners (6-7 years old): No Scoring: Let each child choose a card that fits a simply told story. Afterwards, they explain why they chose that card.

Advanced learners (8-9 years old): Limit the Choices: For example, only lay out 3 cards per round to make it easier. 

Experts (9–10 years old): Play Cooperatively: Work together to choose the correct card that fits a story.

How to play cooperatively:

• One student places 4 cards in the middle and tells a story that fits one of the cards.
• The others listen carefully.
• They must guess which card the storyteller is talking about. The storyteller counts to three, and the other students point to their chosen card at the same time.
• If everyone is correct, the group earns the card as a point. They should try to earn as many points as possible together. If someone is wrong, the group gets no point.
• All cards are then removed, and the next student becomes the storyteller.

• Why did you think this was the correct card?
• What made it misleading or clever?
• What made that description good or difficult?
• What else could the storyteller have said to make it better or vaguer?
• Why did almost everyone get it right, or why did almost no one get it right?
• What does that teach us about how we think or interpret?
• What makes a description “clever” in this game?
• How can you better put yourself in someone else’s shoes?
• What does this game tell us about how different people interpret images?