Keeping students engaged is a constant challenge for educators. While traditional teaching methods have their place, incorporating technology and gamification can transform a classroom’s energy. Gimkit has emerged as a powerful tool in this space, offering a live learning game show that students genuinely enjoy. It takes the classic quiz format and adds strategic layers, upgrades, and a variety of game modes that keep the experience fresh and exciting.
If you’re looking to spice up your review sessions, introduce a new topic, or simply inject some fun into your lesson plans, exploring Gimkit’s diverse game modes is a great place to start. Each mode offers a unique twist that caters to different learning objectives and classroom dynamics. This article will guide you through five fun and effective Gimkit game modes, explaining how they work and providing practical tips to help you implement them successfully.
1. Classic: The Original Competitive Quiz
The Classic mode is where it all began. It’s the foundational Gimkit experience and an excellent starting point for anyone new to the platform. In this mode, students answer questions to earn in-game cash. The twist is what they can do with that money. They can spend it on upgrades to increase their earnings per question, purchase power-ups to affect other players, or save it to climb the leaderboard.
How It Works
Students answer questions at their own pace on their own devices. For every correct answer, they earn a set amount of cash. As they accumulate money, they can visit the in-game shop to buy upgrades. These upgrades might increase the cash they earn for each subsequent correct answer or multiply their earnings streak bonus. The game ends when a time limit is reached or a student hits a pre-determined cash goal. The player with the most money at the end wins.
Why It’s Great for the Classroom
- Individual Pacing: Students who need more time can take it, while faster learners can keep moving. This differentiation is built directly into the game.
- Encourages Critical Thinking: The shop feature introduces a layer of strategy. Students must decide: Do I spend my money now on a small upgrade, or save up for a more powerful one later? This element of resource management adds a fun, cognitive challenge beyond just answering questions correctly.
- High Engagement: The competitive nature and the ability to see earnings grow in real-time are incredibly motivating for students.
Pro-Tips for Teachers
- Set a clear objective before starting. Is the goal to reach a certain amount of money or to last for a specific duration? For a quick review, a 10-minute game is perfect.
- Use the “Join In Late” feature to allow students who arrive late or have technical difficulties to join without disrupting the game.
- After the game, review the post-game report. It provides valuable insights into which questions students struggled with the most, helping you identify areas that need re-teaching.
2. Trust No One: A Game of Social Deduction
Inspired by the popular game Among Us, “Trust No One” turns your quiz into a thrilling mystery. Students work together to complete tasks by answering questions correctly, but a few randomly selected “Impostors” are secretly trying to sabotage the group’s efforts. The crew’s goal is to identify and vote out the impostors before it’s too late.
How It Works
At the start of the game, players are secretly assigned a role: Crewmate or Impostor. Crewmates earn “power” for the group by answering questions correctly. Impostors also answer questions but can use the power they earn to activate sabotage abilities, like draining the group’s power or hiding players’ names. After a certain amount of time, a meeting is called. Players discuss who they suspect is an impostor and then vote someone out. The crew wins if they vote out all impostors or reach the power goal. The impostors win if they outnumber the crew.
Why It’s Great for the Classroom
- Promotes Collaboration and Communication: During discussion rounds, students must articulate their reasoning and suspicions. This encourages them to communicate clearly and persuasively.
- Develops Deductive Reasoning: Students learn to look for patterns of behavior, analyze actions, and make logical deductions to identify the impostors.
- Unforgettable Fun: The suspense and social dynamics make this mode a classroom favorite. It’s an excellent way to build community and practice soft skills in a low-stakes, high-fun environment.
Pro-Tips for Teachers
- Encourage students to use specific evidence during discussions. Instead of “I think it’s Sarah,” prompt them with questions like, “What did you see that made you suspicious?”
- Play along with your students to model good sportsmanship and communication.
- Use this mode for review topics that are already familiar. The cognitive load of tracking impostors is high, so it’s best when the content itself is not brand new.
3. The Floor is Lava: A Race Against Time
This mode injects a sense of urgency and teamwork into the quiz experience. The entire class works together to answer questions and earn money to stay above a rising tide of lava. If even one student falls in, the whole class loses. It’s a cooperative game that shifts the focus from individual competition to collective survival.
How It Works
The game screen shows every student’s avatar on a platform above a pool of lava. The lava rises at a steady pace. To stay “safe,” the class must collectively reach a series of escalating cash goals. Students answer questions to earn money, which contributes to the class-wide total. As they hit each goal, the floor rises, giving them more time. The game is a race to survive as long as possible.
Why It’s Great for the Classroom
- Builds a Collaborative Spirit: Since the entire class wins or loses together, students are motivated to help and encourage one another. It breaks down competitive barriers and fosters a supportive learning environment.
- Creates Positive Peer Pressure: Students understand that their individual effort directly impacts the group’s success. This encourages everyone to participate and try their best.
- High-Energy, Low-Stakes Review: The fast-paced nature makes it perfect for a quick, energetic review session before a test or at the end of a unit.
Pro-Tips for Teachers
- Before the game starts, emphasize that it’s a team effort. Set the stage by saying something like, “We all need to work together to survive!”
- Project the game screen for the whole class to see. Watching the lava rise and the team’s collective progress builds suspense and excitement.
- Celebrate class milestones. When the team reaches a new level, acknowledge the great teamwork. If the team doesn’t survive long, use it as a learning moment to discuss strategy for next time.
4. Humans vs. Zombies: Strategic Team Play
In this team-based game, students are divided into two factions: Humans and Zombies. The Humans answer questions to earn cash, which they use to buy power-ups and shields. The Zombies also answer questions, but their goal is to “tag” humans by purchasing zombie-specific power-ups. It’s a strategic battle for survival and dominance.
How It Works
Humans try to survive for as long as possible. They use their earnings from correct answers to buy defenses. Zombies use their earnings to launch attacks. If a Human is tagged by a Zombie, they switch teams and become a Zombie. The game ends when all Humans have been turned into Zombies or when the time runs out.
Why It’s Great for the Classroom
- Encourages Team Strategy: Both teams must think strategically. Humans need to coordinate their defenses, while Zombies must decide when and where to focus their attacks.
- Dynamic and Engaging: The constant threat of being turned into a Zombie keeps the energy high. The shifting team dynamics mean the game is never dull.
- Great for Larger Classes: This mode works exceptionally well with a larger group, as the team-based chaos is part of the fun.
Pro-Tips for Teachers
- Allow teams to have a brief “strategy session” before the game begins. This empowers them to think tactically from the start.
- Balance the teams. If you notice one team is significantly stronger, you can use Gimkit‘s settings to give the other team a slight advantage to keep things fair.
- Use this mode to review content that requires quick recall, as the fast-paced nature rewards speedy and accurate answers.
5. Draw That: A Creative Twist on Learning
Breaking away from the traditional quiz format, “Draw That” challenges students to showcase their understanding visually. In this mode, one student receives a term from your question set and must draw it, while the other students guess what it is. It’s a fantastic way to engage visual learners and assess comprehension in a new way.
How It Works
The game randomly selects a “drawer” who is given a word or concept from your Kit. They have a limited time to draw it on their screen. The rest of the class sees the drawing in real-time and submits their guesses. Students earn points for guessing correctly, and the drawer earns points based on how many people guessed their drawing.
Why It’s Great for the Classroom
- Taps into Creativity: It allows students who excel visually or artistically to shine. It also pushes all students to think creatively about how to represent concepts.
- Deepens Conceptual Understanding: You can’t draw what you don’t understand. This mode forces students to process information on a deeper level to represent it visually. It’s great for vocabulary, scientific concepts, or historical figures.
- Hilarious and Fun: The drawings, whether masterful or comically bad, create a lighthearted and joyful atmosphere. It’s a great way to build positive classroom memories.
Pro-Tips for Teachers
- Create a question set specifically for this mode. Use single words or short phrases that are easy to visualize. Abstract concepts can be very challenging to draw.
- Set clear expectations about appropriate drawings and respectful guessing.
- Join in and draw a few rounds yourself! It shows your students you’re willing to be creative and have fun alongside them.
Conclusion
Gimkit is more than just a digital flashcard tool; it’s a versatile platform that can transform learning into an adventure. By moving beyond the Classic mode, you can unlock new ways to engage your students, foster collaboration, and assess understanding. Whether you’re running from lava, hunting for impostors, or drawing your vocabulary words, these game modes provide memorable experiences that reinforce content.
Start by picking one mode that aligns with your next lesson’s objective. Introduce it to your class, explain the rules, and dive in. The best way to learn is by doing, and your students will appreciate the effort to make their education both meaningful and incredibly fun.
