How to Play a Zap Game: A High-Energy Review Game Your Students Will Love

If you’re looking for a way to make test review more exciting—or you just want to inject a little energy into your classroom—Zap games are a total game-changer.

I use Zap games regularly in my middle school science classroom, and they never disappoint. My students are engaged, cheering each other on, and best of all—they’re reviewing essential content without even realizing how much they’re learning.

So what is a Zap game, and how does it work? Let me break it down for you.

What Is a Zap Game?

Zap is a PowerPoint-based review game that works best when played in teams. The gameboard contains 64 clickable buttons, each linking to a slide that contains either a review question or a special action. The objective? Answer questions correctly and collect the most popsicle sticks by the end of the game!

Zap is fast-paced, unpredictable, and totally classroom-friendly. You don’t need fancy materials—just a projector and something to use as a scoring token (I use popsicle sticks, but paperclips or tally marks on the board work too!).

How to play a Zap game:

1. Divide your class into teams — as many as you’d like, though 3–6 tends to work best.
2. Display the PowerPoint gameboard with 64 numbered buttons.
3. Team 1 picks a number, and you click that number to reveal a question.
4. The team answers the question. If they’re right, they earn a popsicle stick.
5. If they’re wrong, the next team gets a chance to steal the point.
6. After each turn, click “Return to Gameboard” to go back and choose another number. The number that was already played will be darkened so it’s not chosen again.

The Twist: Special Slides

Not every slide is a question! Some are “Zap” actions—and this is where things get interesting. These slides might say:

• Zap – Return all your popsicle sticks to the teacher (ouch).
• Steal One / Steal Two – Take 1 or 2 sticks from another team of your choice.
• Give One / Give Two – Give away 1 or 2 of your sticks to another team.
• Lose a Turn – Skip your next turn.
• Pick a Player – Choose a player from another team to join yours!

These slides add an element of strategy and chance that keeps students on their toes and the game unpredictable.

When to Use Zap

Zap is perfect for:

• Unit reviews
• End-of-week content refreshers
• Test prep
• Early finisher challenges
• Sub plans (with a little prep!)

You can find a few pre-made Zap games on topics like DNA, the rock cycle, ecosystems, and more here.