How to create a Jeopardy-like game using PowerPoint, or a similar software. Intended for Librarians creating teen programs.

1. Use PowerPoint to create a FREE themed game!
By Shelly Longoria, Teen Services Librarian
Palm Springs Public Library, January 2013
HOW TO MAKE A JEOPARDY-SYTLE GAME

2. CREATE YOUR OWN SPECIALLY THEMED GAME!
 Creating a Jeopardy-like game using
PowerPoint, or an equivalent, is actually easier
than it seems. There are many
instructions, templates, and examples online
which I have boiled down to this easy method.
 The trick to creating a technically successful
game is all in the proper hyperlinking of the
slides. Here is an easy step-by-step tutorial.

3. WHAT YOU WILL NEED
 PowerPoint, or similar program, that allows linking
between slides.
 At least 25 questions and answers, in five
categories.
 There will be five questions in each category. Make
them increase in difficulty, i.e., the 10 dollar/point
question should be easier than the 50 dollar/point
question.
 Use whatever terminology (dollar/point) you are
comfortable with. For these instructions, I will use
the term point.

4. WHAT YOU WILL NEED
 This will fill one Jeopardy board.
 If you need a longer game, repeat this entire
process, adding a second game board (raising
the point amounts) & more difficult questions
for “Double Jeopardy.”

5. WHAT YOU WILL NEED
 Grahics
A background image, or choose a preset Design
from PowerPoint.
 A small image (thumbnail) to place in the corner of
each slide. This will be your hyperlink spot to
navigate through your slides and run the game.
 Any graphics you wish to add to question/answer
slides.
 Prize(s) for correct answers and/or a grand
prize for the overall winner.
Now, the details!

6. TITLE CARD
 Your first slide will be a
title card. The Summer
Reading manuals usually
have PowerPoint
backgrounds to
coordinate with the
Program theme. I try to
utilize any themed
graphics available (such
as logos for Teen Tech
Week, Teen Read
Week, etc.) where ever
possible in the game.

7. GAME BOARD
Your next slide will be the game board. This is just a large
table; make it large enough to cover the entire slide. Give it
FIVE columns, and SIX rows, and you will end up with a grid
containing 30 squares.

8. GAME BOARD
 After setting up and sizing the table, experiment with
PowerPoint’s “Table Tools” and “Design” for color
selection, shading, cell borders and effects.
 In the “Table Tools” / “Layout” / “Alignment” for
formatting cells, choose Center Alignment and Center
Vertically so the numbers are in the center of each
cell, as you see in the example on the previous slide.
 The first row will be your category names
 The remaining rows will be point amounts.
 You will enter the number 10 in each box across the first
row, 20 in each box across the second row, etc. These are
the point values for the questions.

9. QUESTION & ANSWER SLIDES
 Now make the question and answer slides. It does not matter what
particular order they are in when you create them, it only matters that
you link them correctly. (Linking instructions coming up.)
 Let’s say you were going to make all the question and answer slides
for the first category. In this example, the first category is “There’s an
app for that!”
 The next slide will be your 10 point question in the
category, “There’s an app for that!”
 Create your slide with the question and a graphic if you’d like.
 Place your thumbnail image at the bottom corner of the slide.
This will be where you (later) set your link point. I.e., the
thumbnail image will be linked to another slide. You will click
on these thumbnails to navigate through your slides and run
the game. (Linking instructions coming up.)

10. QUESTION
OPTIONAL
GRAPHIC
THUMBNAIL IMAGE
(NOT OPTIONAL)

11. QUESTION & ANSWER SLIDES
 The following slide will be the answer to the
above 10 point question.
 Create your slide with the answer and a graphic if you’d
like.
 Place your thumbnail image at the bottom corner of the
slide.
ANSWER
THUMBNAIL
IMAGE
OPTIONAL (NOT
GRAPHIC OPTIONAL)

12. CREATE ALL YOUR SLIDES
 Continue making question and answer slides in
this manner for all point values in all
categories.
 Make the questions in each category increasingly
difficult as the points go up.
 The slides do not have to be separated into categories
within the slideshow.
 You will end up with 25 question slides and 25 answer
slides.
 ALL of them should have your thumbnail image in the
bottom corner.

13. JUST FOR MORE FUN…
 OPTIONAL
 You may place a single slide anywhere in the game
for the “Daily Double.” If a player selects this
square, you may ask them a unique question for a
special prize, or just give them a special prize for
finding the “Daily Double.”

14. NOW LET’S MAKE IT A GAME!
 You will be using the Insert menu, and the
Hyperlink button.
 Linking is what makes the game work, so be careful
to link the slides properly.
 If you used the “Daily Double” slide, it will link back
to the game board slide.
 You will be attaching each hyperlink to the
thumbnail image at the bottom of each of your
slides.
 Areyou ready for the big secret to making this a
game?! … HYPERLINKS!

15. 1) LINK FROM BOARD TO QUESTION
 Each POINT amount on the game board slide
will link to the question in that category for that
point value.
 On the game board, highlight 10 in the first column.
 Click Insert on the File Menu
 Click Hyperlink on the Insert
Menu
 Choose Link to: Place in This
Document
 Select the QUESTION slide for
your first category, 10-point value

16. 2) LINK FROM QUESTION TO ANSWER
Select your
thumbnail, and
navigate to the
Insert Hyperlink
menu.
Link your thumbnail to the
ANSWER slide for this question.

17. 3) LINK ANSWER BACK TO GAME BOARD
Select your
thumbnail, and
navigate to the
Insert Hyperlink
menu.
Link your thumbnail for EACH ANSWER slide
back to the GAME BOARD
& the game continues!

18. LINKING SUMMARY
 Link each point value to the slide with the
QUESTION for that point value.
 Link each QUESTION slide to its ANSWER slide.
 Link each ANSWER slide back to the game
board.
 If you included a Daily Double slide, link it back
to the game board.

19. HOW TO PLAY
 Choose order of players however you’d like.
 When a player chooses a category & point
amount, click on the point amount to go to that
QUESTION slide.
 Click on the thumbnail on the QUESTION slide to
reveal the ANSWER slide for that question.
 Click on the thumbnail on the ANSWER slide to go
back to the game board.
 The next player chooses a category/point
value, and the game continues until you run out of
questions.

20. PRIZES
There are different ways you can award prizes,
depending on your budget, and the theme.
 If you have incentive items, you could give out
items of increasing size for each point amount
answered correctly.
 Forexample, for the “Teens Own the Night” SRP theme, I
awarded a button for a correct 10-point answer, a slap
bracelet for a correct 20-point question, a book for 30-
point, a water bottle for 40-point, and a string backpack
for 50. For the grand prize, I filled a string backpack with
books, etc., I’d collected from our Friends’ donations.

21. PRIZES
 You should also keep track of players’ points for
an overall grand prize.
 This may be the only prize awarded, depending on
your budget.
 For FREE prizes, watch the donations coming in to
your Friends group, or ask for donations from local
retailers, etc.