How to play bingo games-step by step

BINGO Instructions

• PREPARE:  Print out different BINGO cards for each child plus a call sheet.  Cut out the call sheet and put the squares into a hat or bowl.
    
• DISTRIBUTE:  Hand out one Bingo card to each child (each card should be different).
    
• CALL:  The caller should pull out one image, describe it and show it to the children.
    
• OPTIONAL EXTRAS:  Click here for ideas for making BINGO more educational.
    
• MARK IMAGE:  The children will then place pennies, rocks, fun foam pieces or something similar on the called image if it is on their card.  (You can also make your own markers.)
    
• WINNING:  Once a predetermined pattern is made on a card, the child with that card calls out BINGO.

PREDETERMINED PATTERNS

Description	Example
BLACKOUT BINGO All images must be marked to get a BINGO This is the most common way to play BINGO This is how we usually play 3x3 grids
LINES BINGO Must make a horizontal, diagonal OR vertical line to get a BINGO This is how we usually play 4x4 or 5x5 grids	or  or
T's BINGO Fill the card in the shape of a right-side up, upside down or sideways capital T.  For example... fill the center column plus the top row. We use this pattern during our daugher Tasha's birthday.  We call it Tasha BINGO.   You could use the same idea at Thanksgiving and call it "Turkey" BINGO...	or
U's BINGO Fill the card in the shape of a right-side up, upside down or sideways U.   For example... fill the left and right most columns and the top row.	or
SQUARES BINGO Fill the card in the shape of a square  (top, left, right and bottom).

When we're playing the game with a number of kids, we play all the variations at once. 

We have a small prize for each 'combination' (a prize for lines, a prize for T's, a prize for U's, a prize for squares and a prize for Blackouts... if we have more than 5 children, we'll do a separate prize for a vertical line, a diagonal line, a horizontal line, a right-side up U, an upside down U, etc, etc). 

We have a rule that a person can only win one prize. The game ends when everyone has won something. If two children win the same prize at the same time, we draw straws or 'guess which number I'm thinking' or play 'rock paper scissors' to see who wins the prize and who keeps playing for the next prize. 

LET'S PLAY!