Printable Instructions Here

End Game SET was brought to us by Gary Gordon & Liz McMahon.  The online version of End Game SET was programmed by Darryl Nester.        

Object
To determine the attributes of the missing card.

The Play
At the beginning of the game, remove one card from the deck and place it face down to the side. 

Now play the game according to the standard rules of SET.  When no more SETs can be found, you can determine the attributes of the missing card as follows:

Remove SETs considering only one attribute at a time.  For example, if eight cards remain (and no SETs can be formed) with one card having 1 symbol, three cards having 2 symbols, and four cards having 3 symbols, consider only the symbol attribute first.  You can make one 1-2-3 SET, one 3-3-3 SET, and you are left with 2-2, so you know that the face down card must have 2 symbols. (It doesn’t matter how you break up the SETs.  For example, you could have made one 2-2-2 SET, one 3-3-3 SET, and be left with 1-3, so the missing card again had 2 symbols.)  Continue this process for each of the remaining attributes and you can uniquely determine the missing card.  Amaze your friends! This always works (provided no one has made an error taking SETs during the game). 

Here is an example with 11 cards remaining.  See if you can figure out the missing card.

 

            

            

            

 

Here is the completed puzzle:

 

            

            

            


The missing card has two striped purple diamonds.

 

Variation
Figure out what the missing card is in your head, and then determine if the missing card makes a SET with two other cards on the board. In this case, it does. The winner (there isn't always one) is the person who can call "SET" and point two cards out that make a SET when the missing card is turned over.

In the Classroom
End Game SET can be played with the entire class, dividing the students into smaller groups, or individually.

For Science, English and ESL classes, the student can name the number, color, symbol, and shading, on each card in the SET. This helps the student practice identifying characteristics. 

End Game SET can also be used as a quiet individual activity.  Transparencies can be placed on the overhead or printed on a worksheet for students to use to determine the missing card.

This variation focuses on thinking and reasoning skills.

To play an online version of End Game SET please visit Darryl Nester's page at Bluffton Univ

It appears your Web browser is not configured to display PDF files. Download adobe Acrobat or click here to download the PDF file.