How to set up a bingo reading challenge

Library administrators and school staff can create bingo reading challenges that display badges on a bingo card, and can be completed by earning badges in a row, column, or diagonal. Bingo reading challenges are a fun and motivating way to allow readers to chart their own path through a reading challenge.

Remember that we always recommend creating new challenges or duplicating existing ones to launch new challenges, and strongly counsel against editing over existing challenges. And don’t forget to save your work often!

1. Log in to the admin view of your site.
2. Go to Challenges and click “Create a Challenge.”
3. Select “Fill a Bingo Card” as the primary way that people can earn badges and click “Next.”
   • Note: You can also select and combine other badge types, like “Log Any Reading,” ”Complete Non-Repeatable Activities,” and/or “Write Reviews.” 
4. On the next screen, click “My Own Challenge” to create your challenge from scratch or select a challenge template to load and modify. 
5. Customize all your setup details within the first “Challenge Setup” tab. Depending on your site type, use one of the following for more details about each setting available to you:
   • Libraries
   • Schools
6. Click the “Badges” tab to add and edit the earnable badge types, badge time restrictions, and individual logging badges and goals, as well as add rewards and certificates to individual badges.
7. Then set your bingo card size; your options are 5x5, 4x4, or 3x3.
   • You can only add the number of logging, review, and/or activity badges allowed on the card size setting you select: 25, 16, or 9.
8. We always recommend adding a registration badge. To do so, click “Add a Badge” under “Registration Badge,” select your badge image, and then set up any attached registration rewards.
9. Do the same for the bingo badge, which is required. You may also optionally add a full card badge.
10. Proceed to add or edit all of your additional badges until you hit the number allowed by your chosen card size, and then click “Next.”
11. Within the “Bingo Card” tab, click an empty square and then select an unassigned badge to add it to that space. Repeat the process until all the squares are full.
    • You can hover over a filled square and select the trash can icon to remove that badge from the space or click the arrow icon and drag the square to a different position to change its order. 
12. Next, click the “Tickets” tab to set up a set up a ticket drawing. This is optional; if you’re not using tickets, you can ignore this step! Otherwise, see this article to set up a ticket drawing. 
13. Keep your challenge in draft mode while you’re finalizing and testing the details.
    • Either click “Save” to keep editing your challenge or “Save and Exit” to go back to all your challenges.
14. To publish, click the “Draft” dropdown, select “Published,” and then click “Save.”

Note: Once you save a challenge in a published state, it is live on your site! And once your bingo reading challenge is published, you can’t add or delete badges or change the order on the bingo card.