Coping Skills Bingo: Online Caller and Cards

Random bingo cards of coping skills or feelings, with a school-safe set. Called squares turn gold; tap to mark one and say when you used it and how much it helped.

GroupsKidsThoughts & skillsCBTGames
15–25 minutes in a group; 5–10 minutes as homeworkIn person and on video
Free interactive tool
Designed by Michael Thompson, MSc

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No sign-upNothing you type is storedIn a Play together room, moves pass through our server only while the room is open.

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How to play

  1. Press Call next to call a skill.
  2. If it's on your card, tap it once to mark it. Only called squares can be marked.
  3. If you like, say when you last used it and how much it helped.
  4. Five in a row is bingo. Then see your summary.

About the technique

Coping skills bingo turns psychoeducation about coping strategies into a game: each square names a skill, such as slow breathing, asking for help or taking a movement break, and players mark the ones they recognize, have used or are willing to try. There is no single originator. The repertoire it draws on comes from child cognitive-behavioral therapy, where programs such as Philip Kendall’s Coping Cat teach children to recognize anxious feelings and use coping steps; in Kendall’s randomized trial, that program outperformed a waitlist for children aged 9 to 13, with gains maintained at follow-up (Kendall, 1994).

The game format follows a long tradition in play therapy. Schaefer and Reid’s edited volume describes how structured games help children engage, tolerate talking about difficult topics and rehearse new skills with less pressure than direct instruction (Schaefer & Reid, 2001). Bingo adds repetition and a group context, so children hear peers name what works for them and build a wider list of options. The format itself has not been studied, so it is a practice-based way to deliver content that is evidence-based in its original programs.

Use it in groups, classrooms and individual sessions with children and teens. A skill learned in a game still needs practice in real situations, so follow up with one or two chosen skills as homework. Read squares aloud for younger children or weaker readers, keep competition light, and treat a child who has used few skills as information rather than a failure.

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For therapists: how to run it

Goal

The client links coping skills to real moments they used them and names the one that helped most, to use again this week.

In session

  1. One client: share this tab and press Call next. Called squares turn gold; the client says which to tap.
  2. Group on video: press Play together and paste the link in the chat. Each member gets their own card; your screen is the caller and shows who has bingo.
  3. When someone marks a square, ask: "When did you last use it? Did it help, 0 to 10?" Adding it is optional; their answers show on their card.
  4. At bingo, each person writes one skill for this week, taps See my summary and copies it into the chat or portal.

As homework

  1. Open the link, then Settings, and choose "My card only".
  2. Look back over the past week. Tap each skill on your card that you really used, say when, and how much it helped (0 to 10). Skip the rest.
  3. Write which skill you'll keep using in "This week I'll use" and tap See my summary.
  4. Tap Copy for my therapist, then paste it into your therapist's secure messaging (client portal) or bring it to your next session. Nothing you type is saved, so copy before closing.

With a group

  1. Pick the card set first (School-safe for a school group). Press Play together and share the link. Each member joins on their own device and gets their own card.
  2. Your screen becomes the caller: press Call next. Called squares turn gold on every card, and players can only mark those.
  3. Your screen shows how many squares each person has marked and who has bingo, checked against your called list.
  4. After a bingo, ask the winner when they last used one of their skills. Close with everyone naming one skill for this week.
Mandated reporting

Exercises like this can lead to disclosures of abuse, neglect or risk. Know your reporting duties before you start, and pause if one comes up.

Good to know

On one screen the card only lets you mark squares that have been called. With Play together, each player's own card follows the host's calls, so only called squares can be marked, and the host sees who has bingo. Without it (My card only), players mark what they hear, on trust. Cards are made on each device; nothing you type is saved.

Worksheets that pair with this tool

Worry Coping Skills for Kids Worksheet

Worry Coping Skills for Kids Worksheet

Three illustrated pages with eight child-friendly strategies, from Bubble Breathing to a Worry Box.ChildrenAnxietyCoping skillsBehavioralCBTPsychoeducational+3Free PDF 3 pagesHealthy vs Unhealthy Coping Worksheet

Healthy vs Unhealthy Coping Worksheet

Sort twenty coping strategies into helpful and harmful, then name the ones you use.Adults and teensCoping skillsStress and burnoutSubstance useBehavioralCBTPsychoeducational+4Free PDF 2 pagesAnger Coping Skills

Anger Coping Skills

Eight steps over two pages, from naming triggers and body signs to 4-4-4 breathing and a written coping plan.Adults and teensAngerCoping skillsBehavioralCBTPsychoeducational+3Free PDF 2 pages

Sources & credibility

Method
Coping-skills psychoeducation and practice, delivered as bingo
Developed by
No single originator; coping repertoire from child CBT (Philip Kendall, Coping Cat)
Approach
Child CBT / play therapy (game play)
Evidence
Practice-based (limited trials)Coping-skills teaching is part of evidence-based child CBT, but turning it into bingo is a practice-based engagement format that hasn't been studied.

References

  1. Kendall P. C. (1994). Treating anxiety disorders in children: results of a randomized clinical trial (the Coping Cat program). Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 62(1), 100–110. Source
  2. Schaefer C. E. & Reid S. E. (Eds.) (2001). Game Play: Therapeutic Use of Childhood Games (2nd ed.). Wiley.

How it was made

Built by the Mentalyc team from the original method and the published sources listed here. Nothing you enter is stored.

Questions people ask

How do you play coping skills bingo?

Each player gets a card filled with coping skills. When a skill is called, players mark it and share when they last used it or how it helped. This tool generates random cards and calls the squares for you.

What are some fun activities to teach coping skills?

Games like bingo, a coping skills wheel or charades make practicing coping skills feel less like a lesson. Talking about real times a skill helped makes it more likely to be used again.

What are 10 coping skills?

Common coping skills include deep breathing, going for a walk, talking to someone you trust, listening to music, journaling, drawing, stretching, taking a break, using a grounding exercise and getting enough sleep. The best ones are the ones a person will actually use.

How do you teach coping skills in a group?

Name and demonstrate one skill at a time, let members try it briefly, then ask when they might use it this week. A game like bingo adds repetition and turn-taking, and keeps the group talking about when each skill helps.

Keep exploring

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Your game designer
Michael Thompson

Michael Thompson, MSc

Michael's background combines doctoral training in clinical psychology with research on motivation, learning, and emotional regulation.

More about Michael Thompson, MSc →

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Table Of Contents
  1. About the technique
  2. For therapists: how to run it
  3. Worksheets that pair with this tool
  4. Sources & credibility
  5. Questions people ask
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Made for use in therapy: a licensed mental health professional decides whether a tool suits their client and guides its use.

Children should use this with a parent, therapist or teacher, not on their own.

Educational practice aid, not a medical device. Not a substitute for therapy, diagnosis or emergency care.