Christmas Bingo Cards

Run it as a party game in the last week before break. Give out cards, call words from the sheet and let players mark squares with candy pieces, pom-poms or small stickers. A 5 by 5 round takes around fifteen minutes, so a class can play three rounds in a party hour. Choose 2 cards per page to save paper. A parent volunteer can be the caller. Keep the sheet for checking the winner.

Besides the fun, bingo works the eyes and the ear together: the caller says a word and players find it in a grid. Christmas words are familiar, which helps beginning readers match sounds to letters. Short words like elf, joy and ivy mix with longer ones such as workshop and stocking. Children often mix up snow and snowman, or star and stocking, so read each word clearly. A later step is having children write their own call list.

Choose 3 by 3 for preschool, 4 by 4 for a quick round in grades one and two, and 5 by 5 for older kids and family nights. Turn the free center off if you want a longer round. Cards per page of 1 gives bigger text for little players. Under Your own words, add names of classmates or family traditions. Use 5 versions to print a set for a full room.

How many words are on the Christmas list?

The list has 32 Christmas words. A full 5 by 5 card with the free center uses 24 of them, so cards share many words but no two players hold the same layout.

Can I play without a free center?

Yes. Switch off Free center square and every square holds a word, which makes a round last a bit longer. It is a good choice for older players who find the free space too generous.

How do I keep little ones from calling bingo early?

Check each claim against the call sheet before you celebrate. Tick every word as you read it, then compare the marked squares to the ticks. Younger players learn quickly that the sheet decides.