SIM Printable – Paper and Pencil Game

The SIM Printable Pencil and Paper Game is a two-player strategy challenge with one simple goal: avoid making a triangle in your own color! Players take turns connecting dots, but each new line can make the next move a little trickier.

This easy-to-prep game requires just two different colored pencils and the printable game board. Download the free PDF at the bottom of this post, including directions, a sample finished game, and a board to get started.

What Is the SIM Pencil and Paper Game?

SIM is played on a board with six dots. Each player chooses a different color and takes turns tracing a line between two dots. The challenge is to avoid completing a triangle with three lines in your own color. The player who completes their own triangle loses immediately, and the other player wins.

The rules are short, but players need to look carefully before making each move. As more lines are claimed, finding a safe choice becomes more challenging.

How to Play SIM

Choose two different colored pencils and decide who goes first. Use colors that are easy to tell apart. On your turn, trace one unused guide line all the way from one dot to another. Each connection can only be claimed once, so you cannot trace over a line that either player has already colored.

Continue taking turns, checking your own lines before each move. If you complete a triangle made entirely of your color, the game ends and the other player wins.

Which Triangles Count?

Only triangles with all three corners on the six original dots count. Small shapes created where lines cross in the middle of the board do not count. A triangle must also have all three sides in one player’s color. A triangle with two blue sides and one red side does not cause either player to lose. The printable includes a visual reminder to help players understand which corners to check.

A Simple Strategy for Beginners

Before tracing a line, check whether it would connect two dots that already have a two-line path between them in your color. Adding that third side would complete your triangle. Try these reminders while learning:

• Look across the entire board before choosing a line.
• Follow your own colored lines from dot to dot.
• Check large triangles as well as small ones.
• Take your time as the board fills up.

For a practice round, players can talk through their choices together. Start a fresh game once everyone understands how to spot a triangle.

Skills Kids Can Practice While Playing

SIM gives players a reason to slow down, scan the board, and consider what could happen next. Tracing the guide lines also provides a simple opportunity to use pencil control during play. Players practice:

• Visual scanning to find unused lines.
• Planning before making a move.
• Recognizing shapes in different sizes and positions.
• Adjusting their choices as the board changes.
• Taking turns and following shared rules.

Learn more about the benefits of paper and pencil games and find more activities to add to your collection.

What Is Included in the Free SIM Printable?

The free PDF includes two pages:

• A directions page with the rules, examples of what counts as a triangle, and a sample finished game.
• A game board with six dots, light guide lines, and spaces to record each player’s color.

Print the directions for reference, then print extra game boards for additional rounds. You can also place the board in a reusable dry-erase sleeve and use two different colored dry-erase markers.

More Paper and Pencil Fun

Keep a few copies of SIM available for indoor recess, early finishers, family game time, or a rainy afternoon. Switch who goes first between rounds so both players have a chance to try the opening move. For another strategy challenge, try the Ultimate Tic Tac Toe Printable. Players work to win smaller tic tac toe boards while planning how to win the larger game.