How Bingo Can Help Teach Kids Math

Ask any kid what subject they like the least in school and, without a doubt, most will tell you that the answer is Math! Most kids and even some adults seem to have a built-in aversion to math subjects. Today it’s become almost second nature to reach for a calculator or a handy phone app that will do the work for you. Of course, nothing beats being able to do math in your head without the aid of any device. Being able to do this just takes practice and confidence.

Making Math fun by turning it into a game can make almost any math topic into something that’s enjoyable. When fun and games are involved, teachers and parents alike have found that keeping minds focused and on task becomes much easier.

Math Bingo

If you want to teach young children math in a painless way, using bingo can be the perfect solution. Bingo can be used as a way to teach not only sight recognition of numbers but also addition and subtraction. As children become more proficient in these mathematical basics, bingo can be adapted to teach even more complex concepts such as algebra, multiplication, division.

How it works is that teachers can make up bingo cards with numbers that correspond to the correct answers to a number of predetermined math problems. If the correct answer appears on the card, the student can mark it off. The game continues until someone gets five across, down or diagonally and gets a Bingo. There can be an overall winner or the games can be adapted to include multiple winners during class time.

There are a number of online learning sites which offer games to play bingo online. For classroom settings, there are additional sites for teachers and parents who homeschool that offer bingo game cards. The bingo games can be adapted for classes for up to 20 students.

Classroom Bingo Games

• Create a bingo card for each student or for groups of students to make up a team. The cards can be made well ahead of class time. Come up with equations or you can find them already made on several educational websites. Keep the cards sufficiently random in so that each student has a chance to win. Be sure to remember the bingo tokens to cover up the correct answers once they have been solved.
• Make up the various math problems for the student who will serve as the bingo caller. Correct answers are marked on the cards and are marked off. If the correct answer does not appear on the card, it isn’t marked off with a token.
• Students continue to play bingo until players reach five correct answers on their card in a line that either goes vertically, horizontally or diagonally.
• The game can continue to include more than one winner if the class chooses to go on after the first bingo is called.

Outside of the classroom, kids can further study and develop their math skills by playing bingo online.

Teachers and parents alike know that whenever a subject poses a challenge, turning that subject into a fun time or a game can make it a whole lot easier. Bingo can turn math into something that is far less intimidating and even makes it enjoyable. The sooner young children can get confidence and have fun with basic arithmetic, the better they’ll be able to handle higher levels of math.