BINGO! A Fun Music Intervention

The Daily Muse     


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This may sound easy, and it really is!  But music bingo is a great activity, especially during the holidays or for special themes.  I have done music bingo for Independence Day, Christmas and themes like the 80's.

When I do a music bingo activity, I try to pick songs that have the song title in the lyrics.  I usually play the song at least until the artist sings the song title.  Sometimes I even play the songs myself on the guitar.  It really just depends on the song selection and the group situation.  If I have to do too much behavior management, then it is cumbersome to have the guitar in my lap.  It has also been a good strategy to ask for volunteers to be the music DJ and help me call out the songs.

Music bingo actually addresses many goals and objectives in a therapy setting.  Client preferred music will help to hold focus of attention and facilitate memory of song titles.  The Bingo concept itself can be a good learning activity for some clients to understand how to line up the answers in a row in order to make a bingo.  Don't forget the prizes or to ask for music requests from the bingo winners!  I love it when the music itself can serve as a reward, but sometimes little prizes help too.  

I use the following bingo card generator from Teachnology, and it has worked great.  Twenty-five songs is just about the perfect number for a 45-60 minute bingo session.  You just type in the song titles and then hit randomize as many times as you want for different bingo cards.

What are your ideas for music bingo?  Have you used this activity before?  And what populations do you think are best for this kind of activity?