The Dead-Simple Starter Guide I Wish I Had on Day 3 of Remote Teaching When My 10th Graders Were Already Muting Me to Play Fortnite
That first Gimkit in March 2020 saved my career.
Thirty-seven minutes after discovering it, I had 32 teenagers screaming at their laptops because someone just dropped $8 million on a “betray your teammate” power-up.
I was hooked. They were hooked. The AP emailed asking what drug I put in the curriculum.
Here’s the exact beginner path I give every new teacher who asks “Where do I even start?” — zero overwhelm, all wins on day one.
Step 0 (30 seconds): Sign Up Like a Normal Human
Click “Sign in with Google.”
Done.
Don’t touch Clever/Classlink yet. That’s week-3 stuff.
Step 1 (5 minutes): Play Someone Else’s Kit Before You Ever Touch “Create”
Search: “Algebra 1 Review – All Units” by KitCollab (1.5M+ plays)
Click Play Live → Classic → join as yourself.
You must feel the dopamine loop once as a player or you’ll build worksheets disguised as games.
Every veteran teacher did this. Every teacher who skipped it regretted it.
Step 2 (15 minutes tonight): Make Your First Kit — Exactly 12 Questions
Title it literally anything (“Mr. Davis is learning, please be nice” works).
Add exactly 12 questions. Not 50. Twelve.
- Default $10 value
- 15–20 second timer
- One image question just to see how it feels
- Save
Play it with your class tomorrow in Classic mode.
They will roast everything that sucks. Fix it that night.
You are now better than 80% of teachers on their 10th kit.
Modes Ranked by How Much Teenagers Will Sell Their Soul For Them (2025 data)
- Classic – Still the undefeated king for actual learning
- Trust No One – Zero off-task behavior, perfect for day before break
- Boss Battle – Test prep that actually scares them
- Humans vs Zombies – Vocabulary god-tier
- Floor Is Lava – Friday reward only (Monday = war crime)
- Draw That – Only if you teach art or Lewis structures
Start on Classic and stay there for your first month. Trust me.
Power-Up Pricing That Works First Try (Copy-Paste These)
Default pricing dies in 8 minutes.
Beginner pricing that survives actual teenagers:
- Streak Bonus → $500
- Insurance → $1,200
- 2x Multiplier → $2,500
- Freeze → $4,000
- Everything else OFF
They will gladly tank accuracy from 94% → 61% for one perfectly timed multiplier.
That’s the point. Dopamine > perfection.
The 5 Deadly Beginner Mistakes Everyone Makes (So You Don’t)
- Building 80-question kits (kids see each question once → instant boredom)
- Making questions worth $5 (shop dead by minute 10)
- Using “must answer correctly to continue” in homework (one bad question = rage-quit)
- Forgetting “Show correct answer after question” (turns learning tool into punishment)
- Running Gimkit on Monday morning with dying Chromebooks (recipe for chaos)
Homework Mode Settings That Ended My Weekend Grading Forever
Assignment every Sunday:
- Cash goal: $250,000–$300,000 (forces 2–3 honest attempts)
- Due: Sunday 11:59 p.m.
- Late allowed → goal drops 15% per day late
Average accuracy: 88–92%
Papers graded: 0
Kids voluntarily replaying because they want the multiplier: all of them
The 5 Creators You Should Bookmark Tonight (Steal Guilt-Free)
- KitCollab → math god
- BioWithBri → AP Bio queen
- HistoryWithHamm → APUSH legend
- ProfePerez → best Spanish kits on earth
- GimKitMaster → SAT/ACT wizard
Their kits are better than anything you’ll make in your first two years. Use them. Thank them later.
One True Story That Explains Everything
Sophomore Malik – failed every quiz first semester (38%, 41%, 29%).
January: started 15-minute Gimkit warm-ups every Tuesday/Thursday.
June final exam: 79%.
When I asked what changed, he shrugged:
“I just really wanted the 10x multiplier, Mr. Davis.”
That’s the entire secret.
Gimkit doesn’t make kids smarter.
It makes them willing to stay in the fight five extra minutes.
Five extra minutes × 100 days = an entirely different human in June.
Start tomorrow.
Steal KitCollab’s Algebra 1 kit.
Run Classic mode for 20 minutes.
When your quietest kid finally screams “LET’S GOOOO” after a 42-streak, you’ll understand why the rest of us are addicted.
Welcome to the cult.
There’s no leaving.