Dominos are a classic toy that teaches kids counting, shapes, and motor skills. They can be used to play games such as patty cake, matador, or Mexican train where players take turns placing dominoes in straight or curved lines and then flicking them until the whole line falls. Dominoes can also be arranged to create a 3D structure such as a tower or pyramid. There are even Domino Art installations that allow people to create designs with the pieces in a more artistic way.
Lily Hevesh started playing with her family’s 28-piece set of dominoes when she was 9. She liked the idea that one small move could cause a chain reaction that would lead to the next piece falling. She soon discovered that she was capable of building intricate domino sets. Now, Hevesh is a professional domino artist who has created massive setups for movies, TV shows, and events—including an album launch for Katy Perry.
She is an inspiration to many who have a learning challenge, as her success proves that it is possible to overcome obstacles. Her biggest piece of advice is to never give up. “You have to be resilient, and you have to push through the domino effect,” she says. “The first domino is the hardest, but once you’ve pushed that through it gets much easier.”
A domino is a flat thumb-sized rectangular block of a material such as bone, silver lip ocean pearl oyster shell (MOP), ivory, or dark hardwood like ebony with one to six pips or dots on each face. A domino is divided by a line or ridge into two parts, with each part bearing an arrangement of spots called pips similar to those on a die. The other side is blank or has identically patterned surfaces. Some dominoes are marked with a number of pips on only one face, while others have a different pattern on each face. A domino may also be made of plastic or other polymer materials.
The most common dominoes have a maximum of 28 possible ends. Larger sets of dominoes, known as “extended” or “double-nine” sets, include additional pips to increase the number of possible combinations of ends. These extensions are available in double-nine, double-12, and double-18 sets.
Dominoes have been played by people since the mid-18th century, and their popularity increased with the rise of railways and steamships. The game is often taught in schools as an early childhood activity. It is also an important part of many religious and philosophical teachings.
A domino’s unique shape and physics make it an ideal toy for games that require motor skill, concentration, and strategic planning. Some of the most popular domino games involve emptying one’s hand or blocking opponents’ play. Other games, such as bergen and muggins, determine points by counting the number of pips in losing players’ hands. Still other games involve arranging dominoes in rows and angular patterns to build structures or layouts.