Most people are familiar with the traditional game of bingo played using printed cards containing numbers. Pretty much all of us have at one point or another, either played the game ourselves, or at least seen others playing the game. Furthermore bingo is quite a popular leisure or social activity, not only with seniors, and church groups, but online as well.
One thing that many of us may not have considered, are adaptations of the game of bingo. These are becoming increasingly popular both as a form of recreational fun, and as an educational tool (in schools, colleges, universities and indeed corporate training environments). Adapted versions of bingo are played using bingo cards containing words or phrases (chosen to suit to the theme of game), rather than numbers. For example, a Thanksgiving bingo game would be played using words like “Pilgrim” or “Turkey”, a Christmas bingo game would be played using items like “Santa Claus” or “Bethlehem”, and an educational game, could be played using sight words (words that students must learn to recognize to gain reading frequency), multiplication sums, chemical elements of the periodic table, or whatever is being taught in this particular class.
In the past obtaining the specially themed bingo cards to play these variants was quite difficult and expensive – you had to send-off to a specialist manufacturer to get them. Today however it is easy: you can simply print bingo cards or any theme you like from your computer. Free bingo printables on many different topics are available online, and if you want to print bingo cards containing items of your own choosing, you can purchase easy-to-use but affordable bingo card generator software for doing the job.
By: Sunil Tanna
An increasing number of non-native speakers of English around the world wish to learn the language. This is no doubt for a variety of different reasons, and includes people who wish to come to a largely English-speaking country (such as the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Ireland) to live, work, study, or just visit, and people who wish to learn English for professional reasons. The professional demand for English comes from increasing ubiquity of the Internet (as you no doubt are aware, English has become the dominant language for online communications), and English’s status as a global lingua franca of business, commerce, diplomacy, science, technology, and aviation.
With the demand to learn “English as a Second Language” (ESL) or “English as a Foreign Language” (EFL), also comes a demand for teachers of that subject. For native English speakers, including young people such as recent university graduates, going abroad to “Teach English as a Foreign Language” (TEFL), provides an excellent opportunity to travel and see the world.
TEFL teachers aim is to provide their students with a good understanding of both spoken and written activities. Learning is facilitated by a variety of classroom activities, including both speaking and reading English. Ideally such activities will enjoyable and engaging for the students, as well as being educational.
One game that is very well suited to be used as a classroom activity is bingo. The game is very easy to learn and play, doesn’t have complicated rules, doesn’t require expensive equipment, and can in fact be adapted to teaching many different topics.
In English class the game can be played:
1. Ahead of time, before the class, the teacher should prepare bingo cards for each student. The cards should contain the types of items that form the subject of the lesson – for example, they might numbers, be they might also be dates, times or English words. A particularly popular choice is “sight words”, which are common English words which students need to be able to instantly recognize in order to read English fluently. Anyway, these cards can be prepared by the teacher simply printing them from her computer – this is easy since ready-made free bingo printables can be download from the Internet, or the teacher can purchase low cost bingo card printing software which will allow her to print unlimited quantities of bingo cards on any subject at all.
2. At the start of the class, each student is given their own bingo card. You can then play the game normally, with the teacher playing the part of the bingo caller. Students can either mark off the items from their cards as they are called, or cover the squares on the cards with a coin or counter if you wish to re-use the cards in a subsequent lesson.
Playing bingo in class can be a lot of fun – but it’s also excellent practice for learning English – provided of course that the game is conducted entirely in English! Smart teachers can also adapt the game with their own twists that enhance the educational element of the game – for example, they might require that the student who claims “Bingo” to read out (in English) all the items that they have marked off.
By: Sunil Tanna
There are a lot of people out there who enjoy playing bingo. It’s true that the game is very simple to learn and play, but that doesn’t mean that it’s not fun! In fact, the ease of game play is one of the attractions of the game – you don’t need to learn complicated rules – you can just sit down and start playing. What’s more, somebody new to bingo can be introduced to the game, learn the game mechanics, and join in, with a few minutes.
As you know, bingo is traditionally played using bingo cards contain a grid of squares (usually 5 by 5 squares), with each of these squares containing a number. Players cross out squares on their cards when the corresponding number is announced by the bingo caller. Today however, since it is easy to make custom bingo cards with your computer, themed versions of bingo, with the squares containing words or phrases, are increasingly popular.
Our calendars are filled with holidays and special days, both religious and secular, and these days present a perfect opportunity to play bingo. Whether it be Christmas, July 4th, Halloween or President’s Day, you can easily adapt bingo to the occasion – simply by using bingo cards containing words or phrases relating to your chosen holiday theme.
Although bingo remains a popular leisure activity, it is also finding serious use in education, including K-12 and English as Second Language (”ESL”). Basic skills such as reading and recognizing words (especially “Sight Words”) can be practiced, and more sophisticated variations of the game can be used for more advanced students.
By: Sunil Tanna
