This is an adapted version of Beavers and Mice, a game of memory, luck, and simple arithmetic. Players still aim to finish each round with the lowest total by smartly replacing cards without being allowed to flip them again.

In this version, the animals are not just decoration. The beavers, mice, and cards that show both kinds of animals, represent biodiversity and interdependence: even when there is rivalry, living beings often need each other to survive and thrive. The game stays competitive, but students learn that winning and thriving are not the same thing – nature thrives through balance and diversity, and people thrive when we respect differences and cooperate responsibly.

Skill focus

Primary Skill Focus

• Valuing people and nature

Complementary/Secondary Skill Focus

• Connectedness
• Critical Thinking
• Problem-solving

Age group	Student number	Duration
6-10 years old	groups of 2-10 children (best: 4-8)	20-30 minutes

How to play – brief game rules

A) Core rules (unchanged)

1. Shuffle the deck and give 4 face-down cards to each player in a row.
2. At the start, each player secretly looks at their two corner cards, memorises them, and puts them back face down.
3. Players take turns clockwise. On your turn:

• Draw a card from the deck, look at it, and decide if you want to keep it.
• If you keep it, replace one of your four face-down cards (without flipping it). Put the replaced card face-up next to the deck.
• If you don’t keep it, discard the drawn card face-up next to the deck.

4. Next player chooses either:

• draw a new card from the deck, or
• take the top face-up card from the discard pile.

5. Red cards do not count as numbers. If drawn, reveal it and follow the instruction:

• Exchange: swap one of your face-down cards with another player’s face-down card (without seeing them).
• Second chance: draw a card secretly; if you don’t want it, discard it and draw one more.
• Quick look: secretly peek at one of your face-down cards.

6. If a player thinks they have the lowest total, they knock. All other players get one final turn.
7. Reveal cards, add totals, lowest total wins the round. Play multiple rounds and keep overall scores.

B) The “Biodiversity & Coexistence” layer (added on top)

These additions don’t change the mechanics—only the meaning and the classroom learning focus.

1. Biodiversity Check (before the round starts – 1 minute)

Teacher says:

“In nature, it’s not just about who is strongest. A healthy habitat needs different living beings. Beavers and mice may compete sometimes, but they also need each other because each one has something important for the ecosystem.”

2. Interdependence Prompt (during play – 5 seconds when an animal is seen)

Whenever a face-up card shows:

• Beaver: “What does the beaver help within nature?” (e.g., water habitats, building, shelter for others)
• Mouse: “What does the mouse help within nature?” (e.g., spreading seeds, being part of the food chain, keeping balance)
• Both animals: “This shows co-existence: what happens when different living beings share a home?”

3. “We Need Each Other” moment (only when the Exchange card happens)

The swap still happens exactly the same, but add one sentence:

Before swapping, each player says one of these (teacher can give them as options):

• “Even if we compete, we still share the same habitat.”
• “Different living beings have different strengths.”
• “I will swap fairly and respectfully.”

This is where the game naturally teaches the idea: what I have might be valuable to you, and what you have might be valuable to me – even without knowing what it is yet.

4. Optional (simple) Coexistence Goal for the whole group (does not affect who wins)

At the end of the round, do a fast class check:

• If, across the table, players collectively have a mix of beaver cards and mouse cards showing in their revealed sets, the class earns a “Healthy Habitat” point for that round.
• If almost all are one type, teacher says: “This is what happens when biodiversity is lost – habitats become weaker.”

This creates a parallel message: You can still compete, but the habitat needs diversity to stay healthy.