Jacks Game Rules: Onesies to Tensies and History
Jacks is a small game with a big history. You scatter a handful of little metal or plastic stars, bounce a ball, scoop up jacks before the ball comes down, and catch it again. It fits in a pocket, works on any hard floor or table, and can be played alone or with a few friends. This guide covers the basic rules, the rounds from onesies to tensies, a fair way to pick who goes first, and where the game came from.
What you need
- A set of jacks, usually 10, though some sets have 5 or 12.
- A small bouncy ball, about the size of a large marble or a golf ball.
- A hard, flat surface: a floor, a pavement or a table.
- One or more players. Two to four is a good number for turns.
How to play jacks
- Scatter the jacks: hold them all in one hand and toss them gently onto the floor so they spread out.
- Toss the ball up with the same hand, or bounce it once, depending on the version you agree on.
- While the ball is in the air or bouncing, pick up the right number of jacks with the same hand.
- Catch the ball with that hand, still holding the jacks, before it bounces a second time.
- Move the jacks you picked up to your other hand or set them aside, and carry on until all jacks are picked up.
- If you miss the ball, pick up the wrong number, or touch a jack you are not picking up, your turn ends and the next player goes.
When it comes back to you, you start again at the round where you missed. The first player to finish all rounds, from onesies to tensies, wins.
Onesies to tensies
Each round has its own group size. In onesies you pick up one jack per toss, in twosies two at a time, and so on up to tensies, where you scoop all ten at once. When the jacks do not divide evenly, the leftovers are picked up together as the last pickup, which is the rule in many versions.
The table shows this for a set of 10 jacks. “Round” is the name of the round, “Group” is how many jacks you take each time, “Pickups” is how many tosses of the ball the round needs, and “Last” is how many jacks are in the final pickup.
| Round | Group | Pickups | Last |
|---|---|---|---|
| Onesies | 1 | 10 | 1 |
| Twosies | 2 | 5 | 2 |
| Threesies | 3 | 4 | 1 |
| Foursies | 4 | 3 | 2 |
| Fivesies | 5 | 2 | 5 |
| Sixies | 6 | 2 | 4 |
| Sevensies | 7 | 2 | 3 |
| Eightsies | 8 | 2 | 2 |
| Ninesies | 9 | 2 | 1 |
| Tensies | 10 | 1 | 10 |
So onesies is the longest round with 10 tosses, while tensies is just one toss but the hardest, because ten jacks are spread out and the ball does not wait. Threesies and ninesies end with one lone jack, which is easy to forget.
Who goes first?
A traditional way is the “flip”: each player tosses all the jacks up from the palm, tries to catch as many as possible on the back of the hand, then tosses them again and catches them in the palm. Whoever ends with the most jacks goes first. It is fun, but it favours the most practised player.
For a turn order that gives every player the same chance, roll a dice roller and let the highest roll go first, re-rolling ties, or put the names into a random name picker. Our guide to deciding who goes first has more fair methods.
Knucklebones: the ancestor of jacks
Jacks is generally said to descend from knucklebones, a game played with small ankle bones of sheep or goats. Games of this kind are known from ancient Greece and Rome, and similar bone games are found in many other cultures. The same bones were also thrown for chance: their four different sides gave different results, and they are often described as one of the forerunners of dice. You can read more about that in our article on dice in the ancient world.
Over time the bones were replaced by stones, then by the metal and plastic jacks sold today, and a ball was added. Names for the game vary from place to place, such as fivestones in Britain, where it is often played with five small pieces and no ball.
Tips for getting better
- Toss the ball straight up and not too high. A low, steady toss is easier to catch.
- Before you toss, look at which jacks you will pick up. Plan the move, then throw.
- Scatter gently. A tight spread makes onesies harder but tensies easier, so some players scatter differently for each round.
- Use soft plastic jacks for younger children; metal jacks have sharp points.
Variations
- Fivestones: five pieces and no ball; you toss one stone up and pick up the others in turn.
- Around the world: after each pickup, circle the ball with your hand before catching it.
- Pigs in the pen: instead of picking jacks up, push them into a “pen” made by your other hand on the floor.
- No bounce: the ball must be caught before it touches the ground at all.
- Double bounce: an easier version for small children, where the ball may bounce twice.
If you like small skill games with a bit of chance, try marbles next, or some easy dice games for a table full of friends.
Another game that fits in a pocket is cat’s cradle, where two players pass a loop of string back and forth.
FAQ
How do you play jacks?
Scatter the jacks, toss or bounce a small ball, pick up the right number of jacks with the same hand, and catch the ball before it bounces again. You work through rounds from onesies to tensies, and the first player to finish them all wins.
How many jacks are in a set?
Most sets have 10 jacks and one ball, but some have 5 or 12.
What happens when the jacks do not divide evenly?
In many versions the leftover jacks are picked up together as the last pickup of the round, for example 3, 3, 3 and then 1 in threesies.
What is knucklebones?
Knucklebones is an old game played with small ankle bones of sheep or goats. It is generally seen as the ancestor of jacks, and the bones were also used for games of chance like dice.
Who goes first in jacks?
Players often do a flip, catching jacks on the back of the hand, and the most jacks goes first. For an equal chance, roll a die or use a random name picker.