As the school year winds down, you might hear talk of end of year student gifts. I know I do. And I love the energy and thoughtfulness behind every one, but I just can’t find that same energy at the end of the year to prepare 24 gift bags! Moreover, I can’t help but anticipate the pencils and gifts from the bag being left behind.
What better gift could a teacher give their students than a nice new book to read? One of my favorite activities to wrap the year is a round or two of Book Bingo. It’s an end of year gift-and-game-time in one activity! Here’s what I do:
Have Books
- I watch for sales and use my Scholastic book club points to get a good stash of giveaway books going. Sometimes I’ll get classroom donations of barely touched books I might also include in the giveaway stash.
- Another place to check, if your school qualifies, is firstbook marketplace. You can get a sweet deal on entire cases of books at different times!
Create and Prepare Bingo Cards
I like to use a website designed for creating free bingo cards. You can type in whatever you want and choose a design. Then you can print 30 for free!
I use topics, catch phrases, and inside jokes and references to make it a memorable and nostalgic experience. If we play mid-year, I’m more likely to use learning targets and topics.
Then it’s time to spread the books out in an fun display and play. The site I use creates a master list you can cut up and draw squares from. In my classroom, we play a version where everyone gets 1 book per round – so no 2nd book for a 2nd bingo. I’m sure we can all figure out our own limitations or rule variations. We mark the bingo cards with x’s for round 1 and o’s for a 2nd round if the book supply holds out. The kids are always thrilled.
I know these books won’t all get read this summer, but I know I’ve provided them something to hold onto and I’ve helped them set the stage for summer reading. And, as a bonus for myself, I didn’t have to wrap or prepare an end of year gift.
Tim's Teaching Thoughts 
Great idea! Student choice. Worthy books. Summer fun!
So creative!
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