Bingo’s beginnings lead back to the 16th century Italian lottery, but did you know that before the game took its modern form it was used as an educational tool? That’s right, European countries like Germany were using a bingo like game to teach their children the times tables, spelling and even history. Seems strange, right, teaching history with a game like bingo. Wondering how exactly it worked? Well, even with all our computers and online bingo, the simple old game is still being used as a teaching tool.
Astro Bingo is just one of the many ways to use the popular game to entertain children while teaching. Astro Bingo, not to be confused with one of the many online gaming websites, can be found on the Internet, but not to be played for money. Mrs. Tracey Trimpe, who runs a webpage called the Science Spot, has Astro Bingo setup as a downloadable pdf that can be printed and played in any science classroom.
The idea behind Astro Bingo is very much like a mix of bingo and backwards Jeopardy. ; Each square on the bingo board is filled in with a space term. Your B column can be filled with words from Asteroid to Mercury all the way to Zodiac. The B-I-N-G-O columns don’t really come into play.
In the case of Astro Bingo the caller, or the teacher, doesn’t call out a letter column and a number, but instead asks a question. Example: The students place their terms on their bingo cards. The caller/teacher asks the first question: “Objects made of rocks and metals that can be found in a “belt” between Mars and Jupiter.” The student then has to find ‘Asteroid’ on his bingo card and daub it. The winner, of course, will have a row of five correct answers.
Using games to teach has been a proven method, since 19th century Germany when the first rudimentary bingo game was implemented to centuries before. Trimpe is continuing this educational tactic with Astro Bingo. You can download your very own Astro Bingo board at sciencespot.net, which provided the example given above.
There are many interesting bingo variants with different cards. Bingo players looking for a new challenge should check out Three Eyed Bingo. his is a relatively new game to the Bingo world, though the idea has been around almost as long as Bingo.
Here's how Three Eyed Bingo works. You start with Bingo cards that are just like regular Bingo cards, but with a couple of important differences. In most cases, the cards don't have a 'free' space in the middle, but have a large, staring eyeball. Some players call it funny while others seem to think the eye stares at them while they play! These cards may also have letters rather than numbers, though whats on the card will depend largely on who sponsors the game.
Instead of trying to cover an entire row like traditional Bingo, you'll be trying to match a particular pattern. Most online Three Eyed Bingo games set you up with three cards and you have to match that pattern on all three cards. In the case of online Bingo, the pattern will be marked on the card. Note that Bingo halls that play Three Eyed Bingo will typically play with regular Bingo cards because of the cost of printing cards with the patterns marked. You may also be trying to cover up a particular set of letters to spell some word.
Most online versions of Three Eyed Bingo go really fast , a game can be completed in less than five minutes at most sites.
In some cases, those promoting the game may simply use regular Bingo cards. In other cases, the promoters may have 'Three Eyed Bingo' on the normal Bingo cards to help players remember that they have a different goal. If the game is played like this, there should be cards posted around the room with the desired pattern clearly marked.
As is the case with most Bingo games, the idea behind Three Eyed Bingo is merely to bring a new aspect to the game. If you play Bingo regularly, you know that this addictive game has an incredible following. But you also know that there are plenty of ways to 'spice up' the Bingo game. It might be that games like Three Eyed Bingo are simply more challenging, but it also may be the simple fact that the end requirements are a bit different that has made this a popular game among Bingo players.
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