I don't watch much TV, but when The Big Bang Theory is on, I will be there. It's one of the only TV shows that my students and I both watch. From that show my Bazinga Game was born.
It's rather straight forward in that the students are in teams, I ask questions, and the students answers them. If a team is correct they have the chance to pick a Bazinga Card and we do what it says.
There are nine pockets, each with 3 cards in them. Here is the breakdown of the cards:
Cards about points:
- (3) Erase one1 point from all other teams.
- (3) Double your score.
- (3) Take away two points from one other random team and give them to your team.
- (6) Add two points to your score.
- (3) Erase two points from one other random team.
Action Cards:
- (2) Randomly switch one player from each of the other teams.
- (2) Randomly have a player from the winning team go to the losing team.
- (2) The team with the least points must collectively do 10 pushups.
- (2) The team with the most points must collectively do 10 pushups.
The Bazinga Card:
Take Half of Every Team's Score.
Each team starts with no points and earns one point every time they answer a question correctly. I begin by asking Team 1 a question. If they answer correctly they earn 1 point and choose a Bazinga card. If they answer incorrectly, the question then goes to team 2.
I've been in the situation where all teams had an incorrect answer. With this I ask all teams to look over the problem one more time and ask for answers from each team again. Now the question is worth 2 points.
The random Stuff:
For each class I have each student's name on an index card (I use index card rather than popsicle sticks). Once the teams are established, I place the index cards on piles accordingly. When a card such as "Randomly switch one player from each of the other teams." is selected, I use the card to make this happen.
A random number generator on a calculator works just as well.
Engagement:
In the past I have avoided games like this because some students don't have to do any of the work. They are on a team and their teammates will take care of them. I know, I was one of those students (I'm not telling you which one).
Honestly, this game is no different. If the class size is small enough, we play with teams of two. I mean really small, like 10. But other than that I don't know how to avoid this issue of piggy-backing students. Suggestions?
What has helped me some in keeping kids engaged in games is randomly choosing a person in the group to give the answer. I've done this by assigning kids a number and then having slips of paper with numbers on them to choose or rolling a die (depending on how many people are in a group). The kids like to work on small whiteboards (or paper if you don't have the whiteboards) and they have to show me their work/answer on their own board. It's not perfect but it helps keep more people involved!
ReplyDeleteLove the Bazinga game!
Kristen
I use the random number generator on the graphing calculator to choose students within the group. All students have to be prepared to answer and explain. Before that I praise for good accountable math talk within the groups.
DeleteI didn't play games like this in my classroom for a few years because I just can't stand piggy-backing. What I have done that saved games for my students is printing a record sheet for each student. For example, when we play Jeopardy their record sheet looks just like the Jeopardy board. No matter which student on any team is officially answering the question, all students in the class must work the problem on their record sheet. At the end of class, I collect the record sheets and give grades based upon class participation and effort. It has made a world of difference for me!
ReplyDeleteJessie Hester
www.MrsHestersMath.blogspot.com
I'm starting a new teacher job with K, so it would have to be a lot simpler for my little ones. But I love the concept and it's a little more current. But piggybacking? Really? I don't have a problem with that. If people didn't piggyback in real life, we wouldn't have most of the things we use everyday. It's kind of an essential problem solving creative thinking technique. Copying straight out, that's not good. I can't wait to try Bazinga, see how to modify it for my little ones.
DeleteI also play Jeopardy in my class. I do not use a specific sheet, but each student must work all the problems out on a sheet of paper and turn it in so that I know each student did the work. It doesn't matter if it's their team's turn or not, they ALL have to work out the problem.
DeleteWhenever I play review games, I divide my class into two (I have a very small class, but this could be done with larger classes and more groups). Each team sends a representative to the "player table" (different person each time) and I ask the question. The first person to answer gets a point for their group, but now each team back at their base has a chance to "prove it" for another point. So a kid could get the answer and their team could be the first to prove it, or it could be mixed. I like this because it allows some of the kids who wouldn't know the answer to work on the skill of finding evidence, which is important too!
ReplyDeleteAnother suggestion is to have students input their answers using "clickers" like Smart Response or ActivExpressions. If your school doesn't have these, you could use one of the free web-based ones like Socrativ.
ReplyDeleteI'm always looking for new review games. Thanks for sharing this one - it looks great!
ReplyDeleteI think this looks fun. My only question is...is there anything to the numbers on each card set? Thanks!
ReplyDeleteNo, not really. Just to give the students some type of choice when picking a card.
DeleteSince the kids are in groups, it's their job to make sure everyone in the group knows the answer because they never know which student in the group you're going to call on. Make sure to call on the students randomly, but call on each one!
ReplyDeleteWhat are the things the Bazinga cards have you do?
ReplyDeleteWhen I play jeopardy (but I am planning on using this game soon!) I have a "marker" (a colored piece of paper) for each team and they answer in order. Once you answer you had the marker to the next person on the team. The other teams are also really good at making sure the right person from other teams answer the question, so it helps keep the other teams honest. ha.
ReplyDeleteOk- I so love this idea. But, I have a few super dumb questions. Each time you ask a question and they get it right, they pull a card, right? So, do they pick from the board in order of the numbers, or do they choose whichever one they want? Also, if they pull a card to get points from another team and none of the teams have points, how can they take points? I really want to do this. I already have the materials, but I feel like I'm missing something. Help!
ReplyDeleteThe way that I play it, the students may pull a card when they get a question right. I allow them to pick any number they like, but you could have them go in order.
DeleteIf they take points from a team with no points, then that team goes negative. This creates a problem in elementary classes where they don't have knowledge of negative numbers yet. One way around that is to have every team start with a certain amount of points.
If you play this, please let us know how it went. I would love your feedback and any suggestions to make it better.
I play a review game similar to this. In order to be sure that everyone is participating, I give the question and allow the teams a time limit to discuss possible answers. All teams must discuss the question because they will have a chance to steal if the first team doesn't answer correctly and they will not have more time to come up with an answer. They must make sure everyone on their team knows the answer because at the end of their time limit - usually one minute for discussion - I will randomly choose a student from the team to answer. If they can't give an answer, another team is chosen and another student has a chance to answer. I use the Megatimer from Kagan (cooperative learning)which has a clock, thermometer, timer, and student selector. I've also made a spinner - if I have four groups and four students per group, I make a spinner with four sections and spin twice - once for team and once for student. Teams are numbered one to four and each student on the team is numbered one to four. Anyway, the game is meant to be a review and this way all students are accountable. They do not want to be the team member who wasn't paying attention when the group is discussing possible answers. I really like the BAZINGA aspect of the game that you've posted. Thanks!
ReplyDeleteWould it work if you did it "Family Fued" face off style and have the teams line up so that each team has one student that is playing against one student from the other team? If they get in two lines, you could just have them answer and then go to the back of the line..?
ReplyDeleteOh, I like this idea!! Thanks!
DeleteGoing to try in my science classes, thanks for the idea. Love Big Bang too!
ReplyDeleteThis is a great idea!
ReplyDeleteI did this today in my Algebra 1 class and it was probably the best thing I have done in that class so far this year- I got them to work straight for almost 90 minutes without realizing they were doing the review sheet they wouldn't normally do or get done
ReplyDeleteAre the points taken from the other teams (Bazinga card) added to the team that pulls the card or just taken?
ReplyDeleteIs there any way to recover from a Bazinga and still win? (I imagine this depends on the time left in class).
Are there any "points" awarded that are NOT part of Bazinga cards? Meaning are the Bazinga cards in addition to 2 points awarded for getting the right answer?
I will play this game with my classes (or whatever version I am getting the understanding of...LOL). Unfortunately, I have huge classes (35) - so I will have 5 teams competing with 7 members on each team. I will have to figure out WHO gets to pull the Bazinga card. Any ideas? I want each team to have the chance to get it correct. So the plan is to have each team number their players 1-7. I will get a prompt/question and then allow for 15 seconds of collaboration. Then I will call out a number between 1 - 7. That student (one from each team) has to run forward and write the answer on the board while their teammates watch. (Sometimes I let the teammates shout out correct OR incorrect! responses to "help" or hinder other teams) Then, in the past, I would award a point for each team that got the answer correct. Now I need to figure out how to allow ONE of these winners to pull a Bazinga card. Any ideas???
Are the points taken from the other teams (Bazinga card) added to the team that pulls the card or just taken?
Delete- Only if the card indicates that, otherwise the other team(s) only loses points.
Is there any way to recover from a Bazinga and still win?
- Sure. If the card is pulled early in the game, it really means little.
Are there any "points" awarded that are NOT part of Bazinga cards? Meaning are the Bazinga cards in addition to 2 points awarded for getting the right answer?
- What I do is give a team 1 point if they get a question correct, then I allow them to pick a card. I found that when I only awarded points when the cards dictated, they rarely received any points.
I will have to figure out WHO gets to pull the Bazinga card. Any ideas?
- I've never had any issues with this. I ask the team what card they want and they all seem to take turns nicely.
Now I need to figure out how to allow ONE of these winners to pull a Bazinga card. Any ideas???
- Hmmm... I like your idea of having each team writing their answer on the board. What if you allow the team that wrote the correct answer on the board first, be the team to pick the card? Let me know what you come up with.
So the first question is for team 1, the next question for team 2, etc.? What happens if team 1 gets the answer wrong and it gets passed to team 2- if team 2 gets it correct does the next question go to team 3? Or, if the team gets the answer right do they get another question?
ReplyDeleteThe way I play the game, if team 1 gets a question wrong, and team 2 gets the question right, then the next question goes to team 3. But, you can change the rules if you like to make it work for your classroom.
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I am soooo grateful that you posted this! I too love the Big Bang Theory, so when I saw the name of the game I couldn't help but read. And boy am I ever glad that I did! My kids just adore this game. I changed the categories to better suit the needs of my class, and I only have 6 categories instead of 9, but the idea is the same. Thanks so much for sharing!
ReplyDeleteI love this! I think it will be a hit with my homeschooled kids. Thanks!
ReplyDeleteWow, I am really late discovering this post! Awesome game. I wish I had seen it before I went about creating and then writing about something similar I cooked up for my classes. My students already compare me to Sheldon occasionally Gazinga will take it to a whole new level!
ReplyDeleteHere is a link if you want to check out my Danger Cards game.
http://crispymath.com/news/2013/3/26/gce4lm5brjvv9p1fcnkgerpiuqby5d
This is great! I love how unlike Jeopardy, it's really easy for the teacher...and I don't have to keep track of all the crazy categories and levels of questions, etc. I am going to play this with my kids on the day back from Spring Break to help overcome their amnesia- and they are going to be so suprised by the rewards the cards offer!
ReplyDeleteI love your game idea! This is absolutely awesome. I might try it tomorrow when I review for our test. What I do to keep kids from piggybacking is this. I give each team 20-30 seconds to figure out the answer (depends on the type and complexity of the question - maybe more or less time). I tell them that they must make sure everyone in their group knows the answer and can explain it. Then, when I ring the bell or call time no one is allowed to speak. Then I call on a team and a team member at random (using the popsicle sticks or index cards). I keep the teams rotating out of order so they lose track of which team is next. (I keep track so that teams have an even number of chances by the end of the game.) I pull the sticks to choose a person from that group. No one else is allowed to help at this point. They had to consult before the bell rang. I may ask the person called upon to tell me why in order to get the point. This forces them all to "teach" each other while they are still allowed to talk. It's a beautiful thing to watch them teaching each other.
ReplyDeleteFYI, kids are always asking if they are playing Bazinga! at the end of each chapter...it's their favorite!
ReplyDeleteQuestion: The bazinga card...when you take 1/2 the other teams scores, does your team get those points? I interpreted it that way, and the kids feel like once that card is picked, the game is essentially over as far as which team wins.
That's great. I'm so glad your classes like it. And I'm glad to see you're still ALIVE!!!
DeleteI just take half of the team scores away and give it to no one. They just (poof) disappear. I wonder if I should add more "double your score" cards so that it doesn't feel so compete after the Bazinga card.
I'm going to do that next time (not add the points to the other teams). Something I did was add some "add 5 points to your score" cards and took away the jumping jacks ones. No one wanted to do jumping jacks.
DeleteOH! And I also added a few interesting cards like "switch a player of your choosing to another team of your choosing".
DeleteI'm trying this tomorrow, can't wait! My high schoolers will love this!!
ReplyDeleteAfter reading this post, the comments, and http://crispymath.com/news/dangercards I have come up with the following changes. Include all cards from Bazinga game and danger cards game. Break students into groups of 6 (I have 30-36 students per class). Have students wear nametags or necklaces that give their personal number (1-6). Ask question. Give 15-30 seconds for groups to discuss. Roll a die to select group member to give answer. All students with that number come to board. Each works problem. Each correct answer earns team one point. First correct answer or best answer get to pick card. Since there are so many cards and so many different kinds, the students probably won't see all of them the first time we play. It should keep things interesting the next time we play.
ReplyDeleteWhat do you think?
LOVE it!!!
Delete