I make a rule that they can only use one person for two squares so they have to circulate. They then write that person's name in the square. Give each student a card, and ask them to find fellow students who fit the description in the square.

I use about eight original cards for a class of 25 - 30.

You'll want to make several different cards, then photocopy them. Use a Bingo card template and write in activities or experiences your students might have engaged in over the summer in each space. It opens up conversations, helps students find others with similar interests, and helps them learn names. If the student gets 3 stickers, they have to sit out of the game for 2 minutes.When I have a class where the students don't know each other already, I like to break the ice with this tried-and-true activity. Every time they catch a classmate asking a closed question, they put a sticker on that person’s paper.

What was it like avoiding closed questions?.

The first one to get a line is the winner.

Every time they find out someone’s interesting fact, they can cross off that box.For example, if one Bingo square said “Is afraid of kittens,” students could ask “What are you afraid of?” but not “Are you afraid of kittens?” They also can’t ask “What’s your interesting fact?” In their conversation, they must only use open-ended questions.Tell them that their goal is to talk to students in the class to find out who owns each interesting fact. Insert the interesting facts into the Bingo template and print it off.If my class has a long break, I’ve also done this at the beginning of class, then printed the Bingo cards off during the break. (This could be “I have a twin” or “I’ve been skydiving” or as mundane as “I hate peanut butter.”) I usually have students generate these in an earlier class. Before the activity starts, get students to come up with one interesting thing about themselves that they think no other student in the class shares.Students will practice their interpersonal communication skills and networking skills.Students will practice asking open-ended questions, as a way to ask useful primary research questions.

Classroom bingo for engagment