Teaching a kid American Mahjong isn’t just possible, it’s wildly fun, surprisingly doable, and might just turn them into your next favorite player.
But here’s the secret: You don’t need to teach them everything at once.
In fact, we don’t recommend diving headfirst into full NMJL rules from day one. Instead, think of it like riding a bike: start with training wheels (learning the suits and how to build a hand), build confidence (open hands, jokers anywhere), and phase in the full rules over time.
Here’s the step-by-step way to do it:
Step 1: Learn the Suits
Before there’s strategy, there’s recognition.
Start by teaching them how to spot the three suits: Dots, Bams, and Cracks.
Lay one of each in a row and explain:
- Dots = circles, often painted in blue
- Bams = bamboo sticks, often painted in green
- Cracks = Chinese characters (often painted in red)
Then, show them Flowers, Winds, Jokers, and the Dragons - Green, Red, & Soap (White Dragon/Zero). Let them handle the tiles, sort them into groups, and practice saying the names.
Allow them to sort the tiles in a way that's fun for them. They could organize the suited and non-suited tiles into rows, stack them up, build a house with them, etc. The goal here is to keep it fun while learning how to identify each tile correctly.
🧩 Step 2: Understand Hand Structure
Once they can name and group suits, it’s time to build their first hand.
Explain that every Mahjong hand is made up of combinations (like 3 of a kind, 4 of a kind, or pairs) that match one of the patterns on the card. But at this stage, don’t worry about the actual National Mah Jongg League card yet.
Start with free-form building:
- Give them 13 tiles face up on the mat in front of them
- The rest of the tiles lay face up on the mat in the middle
- Ask them to take turns choosing and then discarding 1 tile at a time until they make a hand that feels “complete” (3+3+3+3+2, 3+3+4+4, 2+4+4+4, etc.)
- Demonstrate how each grouping needs to repeat numbers and match shapes/color
✨ Use the “Make Your Own Hand” section of the Little Miss Mahj Cards here, it’s ideal for beginners to explore without pressure.
🃏 Step 3: Allow Jokers Everywhere (Yes, Even in Pairs)
This is a key beginner hack. In official NMJL rules, jokers can't be used in singles or pairs, but for kids, we suggest easing that rule in slowly.
Let them use jokers:
- In singles and pairs
- In any combination
- However they want, to complete a hand
Why? It builds confidence and lets them understand hand logic before memorizing rule exceptions.
Once they’ve played a few rounds like this, you can gently remove that rule:
“Okay — you’re getting the hang of this. Now let’s try it with jokers only in groups of 3 or more.”
🔓 Step 4: Play Open-Handed (No Racking!)
For your first few real games, don’t play with concealed hands. Let everyone, experienced players included, play with their tiles face-up on the table.
This creates space to coach in real time:
- “Ooh, you’re only one away. What tile do you need?”
- “You could do a joker swap here. Want to do that on your next turn?”
- “Looks like you’re collecting evens, let’s find that last 6 bam.”
Once your child starts recognizing these cues on their own, you can move toward racking hands and playing “concealed.” When we use the term "concealed", in this case we're referring to playing with tiles racked, not with "no exposures/calling tiles."
📘 Step 5: Phase in the Official Card
Now that they’ve practiced making hands, it’s time to introduce all the sections of a beginners card, like our Little Miss Mahj cards. Once they feel limited by the more simple options on the beginner card, you can introduce the actual NMJL card.
But again... go slow:
- Start with just the “Like Numbers” section
- Or the Evens and Odds
- Choose 1 or 2 patterns and practice those on repeat
Point out how the card uses color to show how many suits are used, but not which ones. This helps reinforce their earlier learning.
👯 Step 6: Play With a Parent-Buddy First
Mahjong is better with friends, but don’t rush to a four-person table right away.
Start by playing:
- Just you and your child
- With you and your child playing together as a team against other players
- Taking turns drawing and discarding
This keeps the pace manageable and makes it easier to reinforce rules as you go. Once they feel ready? Invite siblings or friends to join in.
🧳 Bonus Tip: Keep It Super Simple
We designed our Little Miss Mahj Cards because we were constantly forgetting our big card deck and wanted something simple, fun, and toss-in-your-bag ready. Turns out, using color-blind friendly colors and fewer hand options made them perfect for beginners to learn to play!
These cards are:
- Themed and illustrated to match our tile personas
- Beginner-friendly with colors that don't match your tiles (makes it much easier to understand you don't need to match the suit to the color on the card!)
- Filled with a streamlined number of hands and a Make Your Own section
They’re the best way to practice before entering something like our Draw Your Dream Tiles contest, which is another great way to keep your child engaged in learning Mahjong.