Bingo Games in the Math Classroom

BINGO - It's not just for old people

When you think of BINGO, do you think of a room full of senior citizens with their daubers ready to go?

I'm going to let you in a secret.

KIDS.

LOVE.

BINGO.


Whether you are playing for 5 in a row or blackout bingo (complete the whole card), there is just something in the anticipation of whether or not YOUR NUMBER is going to be called next.

Most kids already know how to play this game, and even if they don't, it's so easy you don't need to take a lot of time explaining the rules (unlike a lot of strategy games that come with a tome of rules that make no sense until you have played a few times!).

Practice and Review Math Facts with Bingo

This bingo game is perfect for kids learning their multiplication facts or for review, even up through middle school grades! There is no shame in reviewing the basic multiplication tables, particularly before standardized testing. It solidifies fluency, which allows students to work on the problem solving and not make an avoidable multiplication error when under pressure.

https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Multiplication-Bingo-826501?aref=s2635xts&utm_source=Momgineer%20Blog&utm_campaign=BINGO%20Games%20-%20Multiplication%20Bingo

Create Your Own Bingo Math Games

There are a number of websites you can use for personal use to create your own BINGO games. It does get a little tricky when you are creating games for math instead of with words, particularly if you are working with fractions, which can be difficult to format correctly.

Bingo Baker

Print-Bingo Custom Cards Creator (generate multiple times for enough cards)

My Free Bingo Cards

Osric Bingo Generator - Simple but gets the job done!

Purchase Pre-Made Math Games

I have made several math bingo games and am open to requests on making more (just contact me).

All Bingo Games

Or find these popular math bingo games on Teachers pay Teachers

Equivalent Fractions Bingo

Mixed Number & Improper Fractions Bingo

Pin these Bingo Math Game Ideas for Later:

STEM Tale - Robin Hood Activity

Fairy Tale STEM Activity for Robin Hood

STEM and literacy are the PERFECT combo to get kids hooked on engineering! I have created a series of STEM fairy tale stories that take a beloved fairy tale and give it a STEM twist!

Robin Hood has gotten himself into a jam. He needs your students to help him design and create a new bow so he can win the archery competition and pay back the money he stole!

Materials Needed for this STEM Fairy Tale Activity

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• string, twine, or balloons (for balloon animals, please be aware of latex allergies if using balloons)
• bamboo skewers, craft sticks, or plastic spoons
• duct tape (Gorilla tape is my go-to!)
• pencils or cotton swabs (for arrows)

Before Getting Started with the STEM Tale

STEM tales work best if you read the original fairy tale first or do your own storytelling. Discuss the similarities and differences as you read through the story. Another fun thing to do with this STEM tale in particular is to talk about various weapons used in warfare over the ages. One of my favorite book series for hands-on projects with kids is the Mini Weapons of Mass Destruction series:

Once I checked out one of these books at my local library, I knew I had to have them all for our own library! They are fantastic as a reference as well, to help kids get ideas on how to use various objects in their designs.

Fairy Tale STEM with the Engineering Design Process 

I have designed STEM tales so that as students read the story, they will follow the engineering design process. If you do multiple STEM tales, the process will become routine for your students and they will start using it when they solve other problems.

Design a Bow for Robin Hood

After brainstorming design ideas for a bow, the students will then choose one to create. They will test out the bow with an arrow (either a pencil or a cotton swab). I prefer using a pencil, because the string grips nicely on the eraser. Please make sure all students start behind a line and only shoot in one direction, or you can construct a simple "shooting range" if you are concerned about injuries. The image above shows three varieties of bow - spoons, craft sticks, and a bamboo skewer, all with string. This is an example of how to load the arrow:

Testing the Bow Design

Before testing, go over the ground rules several times. One violation and testing should immediately stop!

• Bows can only be aimed at targets (use a printable target or simply stacked cups)
• Only shoot when the range is clear
• Retrieve arrows when instructed to do so

Growth Mindset and STEM

STEM tales are the perfect way to model a growth mindset. It is rare for an engineering design to work perfectly on the first attempt, so students will likely experience failure at some point. In improving the designs and working together, they will work through the issues and solve the problem. In this challenge, I provided long balloons and most of the kids wanted to try them out (what kid doesn't love a balloon?). What they learned is that the balloons stretch too much and the arrow doesn't fly as well as with a string.

Optional - Prepare the Bow Ahead of Time

The instructions for these bows are in the Mini Weapons book. The craft sticks are soaked in water so they are easier to bend, then you set them into the shape and let dry overnight:

This is a good option if you want to keep variability low. You can then Have the students try various rubber bands or strings.

To find the full resource, which includes an 8-page booklet, check list for self-evaluation, and tips, plus 3 bonus STEM challenges, visit this link:

 

 Pin the idea for later:

To read more about how to conduct a STEM challenge, visit this post:

To see all posts in this series, click here:

How to Make Homemade Scratch Art Paper in 3 Easy Steps

Easy DIY Scratch Art Paper 

Scratch art paper is fun to use, but I think it might even be more fun to make! My kids gave this project two thumbs up.

Gather Materials for your Scratch Art Paper

• card stock
• crayons
• black tempera paint
• dish soap
• paint brushes, foam brushes, or sponges   
• bamboo skewers or wooden scratch sticks from a scratch art set

Start Coloring!

Cut the card stock in half or even quarters if you want the sheets to be more manageable. Use the crayons to color the entire page. It's particularly fun to use all the colors of the rainbow!

Scratch Art Paper Step 1: Color a good amount of the card stock!

Mix it Up

Use a 50/50 mixture of black tempera paint and dish detergent and paint over the colors (a foam brush works well).

Scratch Art Paper Step 2: Paint over your colors

Create Your Scratch Art Designs

After the paint has dried, it's time to scratch off the black layer! This is the fun part!

Pin this post to easily come back to it later!

10 Easy STEM Activities Your Kids Will Love

Top Simple STEM Challenges

It all started with a bag of cups and some tape. Blue painters tape can change your child's life, especially if they've been blessed with an imagination. Why not give that creative energy some direction? After you have gathered some basic materials, you are ready to start some simple STEM challenges!

 

Easy STEM Building challenges

Building challenges are easily accessible. You can use a variety of materials and get totally different results. Some fun ones to try:

• books
• cups
• dice
• sand
• pipe cleaners
• LEGOs
• empty recyclable containers
• deck of playing cards

Ask some questions to get your kids to explore the challenge more: What happens if the base is narrower than the top? Is this tower strong enough to support your weight? What about the weight of a small book or toy? Is there one spot on the structure you could touch or push and have the whole thing come crashing down? What happens if you mix the materials in the structure? Will it still work?

 

Explore Force & Motion with these STEM challenges

Experience gravity, drag, and friction with these fun STEM challenges. Start with a paper airplane. Learn the basics of making good folds and creases. Try out your design with some modifications. Questions to ask: What happens when you add weights like paper clips or pennies, cut flaps at the back of the wings and fold them up, or change the material (try it with small light paper or even big newspaper)? What is the longest distance or time you can make the airplane fly? Can you make it fly in a loop?

Use cardboard tubes or paper to create a marble run. Questions to ask: Can you make it take a specific amount of time for the marble to reach the bottom in a repeatable way? What happens as you change the angles of your tubes? Does the size of the marble change the speed at which it completes the run?

What about a car ramp for a toy car? Can you make it so the car stops when it gets to the bottom? What happens if you add a jump into the ramp? Will the car land on its wheels or flip?

 

Use hard boiled or plastic eggs and design a container that protects them. Can you drop it from the seat of a chair and keep it safe? What about if you drop it from a table, a high shelf, or even off a second story? What are some ways of protecting the egg?

How far apart can you place the dominoes and have your domino chain reaction work? What if the dominoes are of a different size? Will they still fall over?

Get creative with STEM and STEAM

Sometimes it's fun to get outside and get messy! Make a simple bubble solution with water, dish detergent, and corn syrup (a lot of water, much less dish soap, even less corn syrup - the amounts vary in recipes I've found but if you fill a pitcher most of the way with water, put in about a half cup of dish soap, and about an eighth of a cup of corn syrup it works pretty well. These proportions are less than what I have found online but if it isn't working for you just up the dish soap or corn syrup). Use pipe cleaners or straws and try to make a bubble wand! Questions to ask: can you make a bubble into a shape other than a sphere? What's the biggest bubble you can create?

For rainy days or when you just want to go digital, head to your favorite drawing program. Try to create symmetry art or a fun word cloud with your favorite science words!

If you are looking to go deeper into STEM exploration, I have a set of 10 challenges that include more details about the set up, as well as key engineering vocabulary terms and graphic organizers to record the process. You can can an idea of what they are like at my guest post on Minds in Bloom - there is even a graphic organizer you can download and print to get you started!

What are your favorite easy STEM activities? Want to save these ideas for later? Pin them with this graphic:

Studying U.S. States with Zoob

I can't take credit for this idea (that goes to my 7 year old), but I just love it so much I have to share it! We love hands-on learning at home, and I love that this is a fun way to look at some of the features of United States geography.

My son walked into the kitchen the other day holding up a shape he had made out of ZOOB pieces. "Hey Mom, doesn't this look like Nevada?" he said. We have been playing the game, the Scrambled States of America a lot lately, so it wasn't much of a surprise. I asked if I could take a photo of it with the card from the game:

Then I asked him if he thought we could make any other states. he suggested we start with an "easy" state, like Wyoming:

We then reshaped the loop of ZOOB pieces into many other states, and I took photos of several of them with their corresponding cards from the Scrambled States of America game:

Sorry this photo of Texas is blurry! My son realized he wouldn't be able to make the shape without adding more ZOOB pieces to the loop. This was some seriously fun hands-on geography learning that kept my son engaged for quite awhile!

The Scrambled States game is put out by Gamewright:

My 9 year old then had the idea of using the Scrambled States cards in a number of ways, so if you have the game you may want to have your kids do this too. You can order the states by geographic size by using the booklet that comes with the game. He also then had the idea of reordering the cards in the order they joined the union! At this point I'm pretty sure my kids know more about our states than I do!

ZOOB sets come in many different sizes and options. Look for them both at your local toy or learning store! They can be difficult to snap, and I would recommend them for children no younger than 6. My kids were happy building with LEGOs younger than they could easily work the ZOOB pieces, as they can be tricky to snap together. 

 
Have you used ZOOB in your homeschool or classroom, or do you have another fun way to learn about geography? You may also want to read about how we studied landforms and water forms using play dough:

Supermoon eclipse 2015!

Here are a few photos I took last night during the supermoon lunar eclipse. I know these don't compare to seeing it in person, or from a professional photographer's photos, but I so enjoyed this event!

Apple Picking!

Fall is my favorite season here in New England. This morning, we went apple picking! Here are a few pictures from our trip, to a very busy farm. Temperatures this morning were close to freezing, but by the time we finished picking they had warmed up enough that we were all pretty toasty.