iNaturalist Bingo Cards

I teach natural history and field studies at the college level. A component of my classes is introducing students to iNaturalist, which I think is one of the best things I can give someone during the few days I have with them in the field. Most students stop using the platform after the class, but a few persist, and in the meantime, a lot of observations are generated.

I was looking for a way to motivate my students to make observations without creating negative incentives. I landed on the idea of a bingo game that can be played in the background of our activities. Winning bingo gets you a small prize, separate from the grade.

Students love this, and it is a guaranteed hit when you can point out a coveted species on someone's bingo card. Organisms that were once easily overlooked are now highly sought after. It is enough to keep most of the class looking all the time, and a few students end up producing many more observations than they otherwise would.

I made this little app for myself, but enough people kept asking for the link that I thought I should build it out properly. I hope it is useful to you and whatever group you are sharing these bingo cards with.

If you have any feature requests or bugs to report, see the bottom of the page for details on how to reach me.