Bingo for Teachers
Explore printable bingo card templates and games for kids created by teachers to play in math class, reading centers and more! Get students excited to learn with the fun game that dates back hundreds of years and yet feels brand-new to every class of kids!
This collection of printable and digital bingo cards was created by the expert teachers on the Teach Starter team and includes curriculum-aligned activities designed to promote active learning and elementary student participation.
Do you think of retirees with their daubers, or maybe a certain kids' song when you hear the word "bingo?" Maye you haven't used a bingo game in your classroom and want to know more about how to play, where these games come from and what makes them so fun for kids? Read on for a primer from our teacher team, including tips to add this game to your classroom activities!
What Is Bingo? The Popular Game Explained
Bingo is probably best known as a game of chance that involves a special card or grid with numbers, letters, words or objects on it. Participants play by marking off the items on their cards as they're randomly called out.
The goal is to complete a predetermined pattern to win.
What you may not know is this popular game played in schools all around the country dates back to the 1500s, when Italians played what was then known as "Il Gioco del Lotto d'Italia" — an Italian lottery. The Italian version of the game was played with a set of numbered squares, and participants would place their bets on specific numbers.
As part of the original bingo game, a person known as the banker would draw numbered tokens from a bag and announce them. This is similar to today's game's bingo "caller" or announcer. Players would then mark off the called numbers on their game cards, and the winner would be the first person to complete a specific pattern.
Bingo cards are always set up in grid form as seen above.
The game made its way to the US sometime in the 1900s, and teachers quickly recognized it as a way to engage students to reinforce learning, work on listening skills and plenty more.
How to Play Bingo in the Classroom
If you've never played bingo, don't worry. This is an easy game to learn, so you don't have to study a ton of directions before adding it to your lesson plans.
Here's a fast guide from our teacher team!
Supplies
- Bingo cards
- Small items for students to use to cover the squares in their grid (math manipulatives work well here!) OR pencils to use to mark on their grids
Instructions
- Print out the bingo cards you need for your game, and provide students with their own cards. Students should have different grids to make the game fun.
- Call out items based on your bingo card game theme (for example, if you're playing Multiplication Bingo, you may be calling out the products of particular multiplication facts).
- As the item is called out, students should check their cards to see if the item appears. If it does, they should make a mark on that grid or place an item on top to cover it.
- The game continues with the teacher calling out items until a player completes the required pattern and shouts "Bingo!" to signal their win.
How to Make a Bingo Card for Your Students
This collection is stocked with dozens of pre-made bingo cards that are ready to print, but maybe you want to put your own spin on them?
Here are a few things to keep in mind:
- Bingo cards are typically 5x5 grids, but they can be any size.
- Each square on a bingo card should contain a number (or word, depending on the variation). If you decide to leave the center square blank, it should be marked as "free" and can be considered a pre-filled square.
- Winning patterns can vary, such as completing a full row (horizontally, vertically, or diagonally), filling in four corners or achieving a specific shape on the card.
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Our Physical Environment Bingo
Build and master the ability to identify land and water formations in the physical environment with a game of Physical Environment Bingo!
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Order of Operations Bingo
Review vocabulary and solve expressions with this Order of Operations Bingo game!
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Backyard Bingo
A set of 6 bingo cards for kids to use when outside in nature.
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Need vs. Want Bingo Game
Enhance your primary grade economics lessons with a few rounds of Needs vs. Wants Bingo!
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Spring Riddles Bingo
Bring spring into your classroom with a fun game of Spring Riddle Bingo!
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Phoneme Segmentation Bingo - Printable Phonics Game
Help students master phoneme segmentation through targeted listening with fun and engaging phonics games.
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Community Helpers Bingo
Practice identifying community workers with a few rounds of Community Helper Bingo!
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Pizza Fraction Bingo - 1/2, 1/3, 1/4, 1/5
32 different bingo cards using halves, thirds, fourths, and fifths.
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Multiplication Facts 0–12 Bingo
32 different bingo cards for students to practice their multiplication facts to 12.
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Fraction, Decimal, and Percentage Bingo
Convert between fractions, decimals and percentages with this engaging Bingo game the whole class can enjoy!
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Equivalent Fractions Bingo
Match fraction models with an equivalent fraction with an exciting game of Bingo!
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Suffix Bingo - Vocabulary Game
Match words with suffixes to their meaning in this BINGO game.
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Types of Weather Bingo
Identify basic weather vocabulary terms such as windy, cloudy, snowy, cold, etc., with an exciting game of Bingo!
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Mother's Day Bingo
Host a Mother’s Day lunch and play some Mother’s Day Bingo!
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Multiplying Mixed Numbers Bingo
Master the ability to multiply mixed numbers with a whole-class bingo game.
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Goods and Services Bingo
Practice identifying examples of goods and services with a few rounds of Goods and Services Bingo!
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Continents and Oceans Bingo - Geography Game
Turn geography into a fun and educational learning experience by using our Continents and Oceans Bingo Game!
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Multiplication and Division Facts Bingo - Products and Quotients
32 different bingo cards to practice multiplication and division facts to 12.
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Angles Bingo
Generate excitement about angles in your classroom by playing this whole-class types of angles bingo game.
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Inherited vs. Acquired Traits Bingo Game
Understand the difference between inherited and acquired traits by playing a few rounds of Inherited vs. Acquired Traits Bingo!
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Meet The Teacher Night BINGO! Game
Encourage your students to explore their new classroom with a Meet the Teacher Bingo game!
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OA Long Vowel Teams Bingo Game
Practice decoding words with OA vowel team conventions for representing long vowel sounds with this BINGO game for up to 18 players.
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Rotation and Revolution Bingo
Engage your students with a lively game of bingo while learning about Earth’s rotation and revolution.
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Adding and Subtracting Decimals – Small Group Bingo
Review how to add and subtract decimals with a small group bingo game!
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Dividing Decimals Bingo
Master the ability to divide with decimals by playing a whole-class bingo game.
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Contractions Bingo Game
Build vocabulary and have fun with contraction word games!
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Homophones Bingo
Make learning about homophones and their definitions an engaging whole-class activity with this homophones bingo game.
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Place Value Bingo Game - Numbers 0-10,000
32 different bingo cards using place value to 10,000.
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Initial Blends Bingo
A set of 30 bingo cards to practice initial consonant blends.
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Equivalent Fractions Pizza Bingo - Whole, 1/2, 1/4, 1/8
32 different bingo cards to practice finding equivalent fractions involving 1, 1/2, 1/4, and 1/8.
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Multiplying with Decimals Bingo Game
Get your students multiplying decimals by whole numbers with this engaging Bingo game.
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Months of the Year Bingo
Recognize and order the months in a year with a printable Bingo Game!