Try This Actually Fun To-Do List Hack to Take Control of Your Ridiculously Busy Fall Semester
The first few weeks back at school always feel like a lot, and my senior year is proving to be no exception: I’m juggling sorority recruitment, new club leadership positions, and living on my own. Add to that finding all my new classrooms, stocking up on groceries, reuniting with friends, and reviewing class requirements for the more than 15 credits I’m taking — and my to-do list is already piling up faster than I can check things off.
Luckily, I recently saw an Instagram Reel that showed me how to turn my daily and weekly tasks into a bingo card. It’s the perfect way to gamify your to-do lists, and it actually looks so fun to make.
How to Turn Your To-Do List Into a Bingo Card
Making your own to-do list bingo card is super easy. Instagram user @ammieyall designed a colorful and whimsical version in just a few simple steps. You can do this on paper, as she did, or play around in Canva to make a fully customized digital version.
First, make a traditional bingo card with 25 squares in a 5-by-5 grid. If you’ve got less on your plate, make it smaller, and you can also leave the center square as a free space. Make your decorations and doodles as elaborate or as simple as you want — this is your to-do list, so make it fun for you.
Next, start thinking about everything you need to get done. This could be schoolwork, household chores, errands, or even simple things like “eat lunch.” Make a mental list, then turn each task into its own bingo square. Depending on how much you have going on, you can make it a daily or weekly bingo card to-do list.
Once your bingo card is filled in with tasks and decorated to your liking, it’s time to get to work! Check off each square as you complete a task, and, of course, be sure to celebrate when you get bingo by completing a full row, column, or diagonal line of tasks — you can also add four corners to the mix if you want a quick win!
Why It’s Perfect for College
As a student who loves making lists (I’m type A and a Libra), I always have a running to-do list in my Notes app. It starts with the typical class readings and assignments, club meetings, and emails that need responses. But when things get especially busy, I like to add more mundane tasks, too, like “do laundry,” “call Mom,” or “go for a walk.” It helps me stay focused on everything I want to accomplish that day or during the week.
How I Used My To-Do List Bingo Card
As soon as I put my tasks onto a colorful bingo card, I felt more organized and more inspired to get things done. A bingo card gives all those random items a little more structure while making your to-do list feel creative and exciting.
Looking at my bingo card for the week felt much less daunting than staring at a long list of tasks in my Notes app. It also gave me a reason to tackle the smaller things I might normally put off — because checking off a tiny task like “load the dishwasher” definitely felt more exciting when I was only a few squares away from bingo!
My favorite part of this craft is that you can make your bingo card as cute as you want. Get creative with doodles, drawings, stickers, and colors. You could even choose a theme for each week or start a weekly craft night with your roommate — I know I’ll be starting that in my friend group ASAP.
