Hello!,
I was not going to post this Blog just yet but I have been getting a barrage of questions about my recent Twitter and Instagram posts where I showcased my custom scratch tickets! Since today (the 18th) is my birthday and I'm writing this post it goes to show you how committed I am to you all and my cause of Gamification! :)
Here we go ...
The first question to address here is where I got my scratch ticket stickers/paper. While there are multiple places you can buy this online I always order from MyScratchOffs. Click here to check out their website. They have a wide variety of styles, shapes, sizes and colours to choose from - some really cool holographic ones too!. They are top quality and always come as advertised. I also find their prices to be very fair and their shipping to be quick and reliable. I ordered and received them in less than 2 weeks and I live in Canada - so that was impressive!
If budget is not a hurdle for you they can even be contacted to create custom designs to best suit your vision. What is also unique about them is that they sell full size scratch sheets which also allows for total customization and creativity! Overall, this is my go to recourse if I am buying them.
But what if budget is an issue for you and you cannot afford to purchase a set? No problem at all, here are a couple of links that allow you to create your own scratch off paint. Before I found MyScratchOffs I made my scratch cards this way. It does take a little more time and effort but it does work quite well!
Scratch Paint Link 1
Scratch Paint Link 2
Here why not ... a great YouTube tutorial as well!
I was not going to post this Blog just yet but I have been getting a barrage of questions about my recent Twitter and Instagram posts where I showcased my custom scratch tickets! Since today (the 18th) is my birthday and I'm writing this post it goes to show you how committed I am to you all and my cause of Gamification! :)
Here we go ...
The first question to address here is where I got my scratch ticket stickers/paper. While there are multiple places you can buy this online I always order from MyScratchOffs. Click here to check out their website. They have a wide variety of styles, shapes, sizes and colours to choose from - some really cool holographic ones too!. They are top quality and always come as advertised. I also find their prices to be very fair and their shipping to be quick and reliable. I ordered and received them in less than 2 weeks and I live in Canada - so that was impressive!
If budget is not a hurdle for you they can even be contacted to create custom designs to best suit your vision. What is also unique about them is that they sell full size scratch sheets which also allows for total customization and creativity! Overall, this is my go to recourse if I am buying them.
But what if budget is an issue for you and you cannot afford to purchase a set? No problem at all, here are a couple of links that allow you to create your own scratch off paint. Before I found MyScratchOffs I made my scratch cards this way. It does take a little more time and effort but it does work quite well!
Scratch Paint Link 1
Scratch Paint Link 2
Here why not ... a great YouTube tutorial as well!
Now ... it is time to walk you through how to create your own scratch cards! Gamification or not these are HUGE motivators for kids because who does not love the element of surprise or uncertainty?!
Step 1: Create Your Design
*Note* For this tutorial I'll be walking you through how I created my loot bags *Note*
Before you get to this point you kind of need to have an idea about how you would like to use your cards. I decided that I wanted to create loot bags that could be found throughout my game, specifically when they defeated a monster or an enemy (I really wanted that RPG lke feel). I predominantly have enemies drop these bags when they are defeated and kids LOVE it!
When I decided this I knew that I wanted to keep the dimensions of these cards to that of my game cards so I measured the pockets of my inventory holder and created a digital template that looks like this ...
Step 1: Create Your Design
*Note* For this tutorial I'll be walking you through how I created my loot bags *Note*
Before you get to this point you kind of need to have an idea about how you would like to use your cards. I decided that I wanted to create loot bags that could be found throughout my game, specifically when they defeated a monster or an enemy (I really wanted that RPG lke feel). I predominantly have enemies drop these bags when they are defeated and kids LOVE it!
When I decided this I knew that I wanted to keep the dimensions of these cards to that of my game cards so I measured the pockets of my inventory holder and created a digital template that looks like this ...
I decided to make the inner circle approximately 2" wide which is where I would be putting the prize information. Once I added the text boxes and adjusted the font I had something that looked like this ...
A good idea here is to make some obvious so they know what prize they won but you can also create some more open ended prizes for added intrigue. For example, I have specific images on my game cards that I carefully selected so for example if I say "You find a chess piece" the players (students) need to figure out that it means they just found a Strategy Session card because it has a knocked over chess piece on a chess board as its card image. This also fosters a deeper understanding of your cards because kids have to know them to understand when they find them. Also, make sure to make losing cards too i.e.: "You find nothing" or "You find some useless bones". If everything wins the intrigue sort of dies off but if they know they can lose and it is not guaranteed, when they do win it increases motivation and the thrill of uncovering a prize!
Next on the list is to print them out and a massive tip here is to use Card Stock paper! You want at least a 50lb value on the paper to ensure that it holds its shape and does not get destroyed both when it gets printed on and especially when it is scratched. Normal, run of the mill paper here will not fly. Once you have that set it will look something like this ...
Next on the list is to print them out and a massive tip here is to use Card Stock paper! You want at least a 50lb value on the paper to ensure that it holds its shape and does not get destroyed both when it gets printed on and especially when it is scratched. Normal, run of the mill paper here will not fly. Once you have that set it will look something like this ...
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I'm pretty big on the idea of your game being totally immersive to the player so I'm big on not using plain ol' white paper. A simple check of an arts and craft store will reveal A TON of different card stock options. Try to pick something that will suit the style of your game. Above, you can see I used a burlap, worn type of card stock and it works perfectly towards the style/theme I want to create.
A quick reminder, if your card stock is dark and does not allow for good quality printing of the text just make the text box filled with a white-ish colour and you can print on anything because the printer helps create the white space you need. While this does not always work it has helped me manage darker than expected card stocks!
Now that you have your items ready you are on to the finishing touches. First, DO NOT CUT THEM YET! Place your stickers, or your paint, over the area you want to conceal and be revealed when you scratch it. When you are done you will have something that looks like this...
A quick reminder, if your card stock is dark and does not allow for good quality printing of the text just make the text box filled with a white-ish colour and you can print on anything because the printer helps create the white space you need. While this does not always work it has helped me manage darker than expected card stocks!
Now that you have your items ready you are on to the finishing touches. First, DO NOT CUT THEM YET! Place your stickers, or your paint, over the area you want to conceal and be revealed when you scratch it. When you are done you will have something that looks like this...
Notice that even though the stickers do not fit the circle perfectly it is OK! In my next design I'll be shrinking the circle or removing it entirely it. For the first couple it is really effective to help you, and the players, know where to scratch. Sometimes they just start to scratch everything and anything when you introduce these so having that target circle often helps keep people a little more under control!
Now, the creative part! I realized I did not like the looks of just this, and really who would - boring! So I found a graphic for an old style burlap, mesh type bag! I duplicated the template I showed earlier in the post and added the bag over top of it and lined it up so it all fit nicely. Then the crucial part, delete everything but the bag! When you are done you will get something that looks like this ... the left being the template to fill in and the right being the graphic overlay...
Now, the creative part! I realized I did not like the looks of just this, and really who would - boring! So I found a graphic for an old style burlap, mesh type bag! I duplicated the template I showed earlier in the post and added the bag over top of it and lined it up so it all fit nicely. Then the crucial part, delete everything but the bag! When you are done you will get something that looks like this ... the left being the template to fill in and the right being the graphic overlay...
Now that you have the template and the overlap put your stickered, scratch off cards, still UNCUT, back into the printer and print just the overlay page! When you do that you get this ...
(...ignore the hole punch I accidentally set the photocopier to hole punch - doh!)
The scratch ticket paper, whether you make it yourself or buy the stickers is totally printable! The incredible part about this is that because you can print on it you are only limited to your own creativity! Printing on them allows you to fully customize each and every scratch sticker you create! As you can see I will be removing the outer circle later on for a more seamless look but I'll keep it in for now so they (my students) know where to scratch!
The last thing to do is to test it to make sure it work!
The scratch ticket paper, whether you make it yourself or buy the stickers is totally printable! The incredible part about this is that because you can print on it you are only limited to your own creativity! Printing on them allows you to fully customize each and every scratch sticker you create! As you can see I will be removing the outer circle later on for a more seamless look but I'll keep it in for now so they (my students) know where to scratch!
The last thing to do is to test it to make sure it work!
And of course they will! Why? Because you are awesome and read my blog! :)
So there you have it! A brief how to regarding the creation of your own scratch tickets for your class.
In my next post I'll give you some more ideas about how you can use this idea in your classroom. I use them in about 3 to 4 different ways at minimum and I'll be sure to share them with you a little later on!
Finally, a small gift to you! Here is a copy of my loot bag template! Just fill in your prizes and print!
Now, go get the word out and start scratching your way to victory!
Until next time!
-Master Heebs
So there you have it! A brief how to regarding the creation of your own scratch tickets for your class.
In my next post I'll give you some more ideas about how you can use this idea in your classroom. I use them in about 3 to 4 different ways at minimum and I'll be sure to share them with you a little later on!
Finally, a small gift to you! Here is a copy of my loot bag template! Just fill in your prizes and print!
Now, go get the word out and start scratching your way to victory!
Until next time!
-Master Heebs
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