Chapter 4: How to Host a Virtual Bingo Night Life is crazy at the best of times but 2020 has taken things to another level—the icing on an utterly bizarre cake. With all the uncertainty, there’s a good chance many of you will have sacrificed your usual weekend amusements for an evening spent watching TV, eating fast food, and arguing with. Custom bingo card with your organizations’ name at the top; Custom virtual invite sent to your attendees on your behalf–each containing a players virtual card and zoom meeting link. Virtual bingo card for each player to use for all 5 games. Simply reset the card with a click of one button.

• Virtual Bingo Team Building
• Which Is The Best Online Bingo

Still looking for some games you can play with your group while social distancing? This week we played Bingo, and it’s fairly simple.

You can do this many different ways. However it is easiest to use Zoom or Facebook live as long as you can share your screen.

Step 1 – Bingo Cards

Virtual Bingo Team Building

Option 1: Printed or Online Cards

The first step was to find Bingo cards for everyone. MyFreeBingoCards.com makes this easy and free for up to 30 players. Click on the link that says 30 cards for free.

Once you do you’ll be given the option to download the cards in pdf. Instead, you can get an individual link for each card that can be texted or emailed.

The online cards actually allow you to play virtually and mark them as you play using your phone, tablet or computer.

Email or text the cards out to everyone playing. I would suggest doing this earlier in the day or the day before so that you can start

Option 2: Make Your Own

With a small group it might be easy to have everyone make their own cards. Post some instructions ahead of time on what the letters and numbers should be. It needs to be a 5×5 grid with Bingo in letters across the top. Then they choose 5 numbers under each letter from the following choices B 1-15, I 16-30, N 31-45, G 46-60, O 61-75.

Bingo Calling

Some of you may have a bingo set at your house. However, for the rest of us I found a great option. Go to letsplaybingo.io. This is a simple and absolutely free bingo caller program that automatically calls and displays called numbers. Everyone seeing the screen can hear and see each ball called.

Other options could include using a bingo cage you have at the church or at home. Or you could make slips of paper with the numbers on them and call out that way.

Video Set Up

Here is where you have a few options.

Option 1 – Cell Phone Video

The first option is to set your phone in front of your computer screen and broadcast to instagram live or Facebook live. Those who get a bingo could text you.

Option 2 – Zoom

A second option would be to use the screen share function of Zoom to share the bingo caller window with everyone. In addition, make sure and share the audio as well.

Option 3 – Zoom and Facebook Live

Finally you can use the screen share function of Zoom to then share on Facebook live. This is what the guys at stuffyoucanuse do with their trivia games.

Which Is The Best Online Bingo

It’s a little more intricate set up but it will allow many people to follow along. And you won’t have to worry about zoom invitations and so many people in one call.

I hope that this is helpful as we continue to all look for ways to engage our youth and church during the coronavirus lockdown. For more coronavirus resources please check out our Covid-19 Resource Page

Are you hopping on the virtual happy hour bandwagon with your besties at work, long-distance friends from college, or your crush? Finally! Your laptop's camera and microphone have been waiting for this fun moment, and preparing for the games, drinks, and laughs to come. Hopefully, you have a glass of wine or conversation topics ready for when you dial in at 5 p.m. Of course, you can always try virtual happy hour icebreakers, too, and bring everyone closer together.

That is the goal of icebreaker activities, after all. They're meant to get rid of any awkward silences that may come up when you and your friends are still trying to figure out the features in Zoom, or your coworkers are waiting for everyone to sign on. They're made for starting lively debates over which character from Friends is the best, or what condiment could be ditched at the next barbecue. (Ketchup? No, thanks.)

Most notably, if you're hanging out with the people on the other side of the screen for the first time — or even just the first time in a while — an icebreaker activity gives you a chance to get to know them fast. The 14 icebreakers below let you catch up and feel closer to your coworkers, besties, and SO while you hang out ~virtually~.

1. Two Truths And One Lie

The first of these icebreaker activities is a classic: 'Two Truths and One Lie.' In this activity, everybody takes a turn coming up with two truths and one lie about themselves. The group then tries to figure out which statement is the lie, and reveals tons of incredible, or shocking, facts about its members.

2. Picnic Basket

If you were ever a camp counselor or went to summer camp as a kid, you may be familiar with 'Picnic Basket.' This game is an awesome way to get to know everybody's names in your group, and some of their favorite foods. To play with your happy hour crew, take turns saying what item you'd bring to a picnic, with the first letter of the food being the same as your name. Got it? Good.

3. Life-Changing Story Time

Are you and your virtual happy hour crew pretty close already? Sweet! Then give 'Life-Changing Story Time' a whirl. Just tell a story about a time in your life that was super impactful, or led you to the person you are today. Maybe you'll talk about when you studied abroad in college or took a risk. The key is to get deep or creative with this one.

4. Show And Tell

Playing 'Show and Tell' may feel a little old-school, but it'll be a great way to break the ice during your next virtual happy hour. Especially since you're checking in from your individual homes, this activity could really get interesting and funny. Simply send out a big email to everyone who's participating and tell them to prepare an item before signing on. Then, see where 'Show and Tell' takes you.

5. Scavenger Hunt

In 'Scavenger Hunt,' start by picking an item everyone has to find in their house, like a TV remote or an apple. Then, count down and let everyone run to go find it. The first one back to the screen wins that round.

6. Roll The Dice

'Roll the Dice' is an easy icebreaker to set up and play. Assign a question to each of the numbers on a dice. The questions may be, 'If you could travel anywhere, where would you go?' or, 'If you could only eat one food forever, what would it be?' Then, roll the dice and see what everyone says.

7. Think Fast

At the end of the work day, you may not want to use your brain much more. But if your crew is up to the task, then play 'Think Fast.' During this icebreaker activity, everyone has one minute to write down as many things as they can in a chosen category. Whoever has the most when the minute's up wins.

8. Get To Know You Bingo

Everybody likes a good round of bingo, right? If so, then make your entire virtual happy hour session into a giant bingo game, called 'Get To Know You Bingo.' Send a printable board out to your happy hour members with squares including, 'someone who has never been on a plane,' 'someone who lives in NYC,' and 'someone who hates coffee.' Then, as you're talking, see if you all can check off enough to win.

9. Virtual Four Corners

If playing 'Four Corners' in gym class was your jam, then you'll love the virtual version of this game. It requires one person on your video chat to close their eyes and count to 10, while every other person holds up a number one through four. The person counting then calls out one, two, three, or four, and the people who held up that number are out.

10. Movie Ticket

'Movie Ticket' will test your crew's knowledge of all things pop culture and film. To play, you have to tell the plot of a movie as if you were one of the characters in it. You have to describe the time you skipped school and joined a parade, with great detail. When you're done, everybody has to guess what movie you're describing — that they 'bought a ticket' to.

11. This Or That

Keep it simple at your virtual happy hour with 'This or That.' Take turns with your people, giving everyone the option to choose this snack or that snack, this trip or that trip. It'll be rewarding to see how other people prioritize things or how their answers differ from yours.

12. Pitch A Product

Have you ever watched Impractical Jokers? Take a tip from the guys and play 'Pitch A Product.' During this game, two people have to pitch a completely random product they've come up with, and everyone else has to decide which one they'd like to 'fund.' It gets competitive and hilarious, so be prepared.

13. Inside Jokers

Set the tone of your virtual happy hour with 'Inside Jokers.' In this activity, everyone sends a short description of a inside joke to one person in your crew ahead of time. Then, everybody logs in, and that person reads out the inside jokes. Everybody has to guess who sent that joke in. The result is a lot of laughing and good vibes for happy hour.

14. I Spy

Last but not least, play 'I Spy' with your crew to get everybody in the right #mood. Ask someone to 'spy' something and give everyone else clues. They could pick a brightly-colored pillow or cat that's sleeping in behind your coworker and her wine. If you find the item, you win and break the ice.