12 Ways to Use Pokemon Go in Your Classroom

You may have heard of a little game called Pokemon Go (if you haven’t, you may have been living in a Pokeball for the last few weeks 😉 ). In any case, Pokemon Go has taken the world by storm, becoming the biggest mobile game in U.S. history, eclipsing daily Twitter users and earning an estimated $14 million all since its American release on July 6. The game superimposes animated Pokemon characters over your phone’s camera so you can “catch” them as you walk around in the real world. You can also collect items from Pokestops (geographic landmarks), and finally, fight to defend your team–red, blue, or yellow–at “gyms” located all around the world.

At first glance, Pokemon Go does not seem like the type of game you would use in a classroom. In fact, it seems more like the type of game you would ask students to put away as they try to play it under their desk during your lesson. However, many of our students are kinesthetic learners, longing to get out of their seats and do something; many of our students are competitive or achievement-driven. Many of our students are already playing this game, so why not use it?

Below are twelve ideas for how to use Pokemon Go in your classroom, or as a supplement to your curriculum. Below each lesson you will notice a list of learning styles and personality types. While the activities are intended to be engaging for all students, they may appeal more to certain types of learners than others. Traits highlighted in pink represent the types of students who would most benefit from that particular activity. To learn more about any of the learning styles or personality traits listed, go to my about page here.

1. Have students play the game and complete activities as they find Pokemon. Start by making your own copy of this document with a list of Pokemon (seen below).
   

   

   Click here to access this document and make a copy for yourself!

   As students catch each Pokemon on the list, they will scan a QR code which will take them to an assignment or activity you create for that character. You will need to create your own QR codes to link to each of your activities (instructions for creating QR codes are included in the download). In addition, I have included common and rare Pokemon as well as evolved forms of some Pokemon. This way, you can vary the difficulty or include enrichment activities based on how hard the Pokemon is to find. You could easily turn this into a class or group contest by Awarding points for speed and/or accuracy. Here are some ideas to get you started:

English: Create a short grammar activity for each Pokemon; assign a vocab word (or list of words) to each Pokemon and have students use the word(s) in a sentence about that particular Pokemon; provide a creative writing prompt for each Pokemon

Math: Create a word problem for each Pokemon on the list

Science: Provide a research prompt based on the type of animal each Pokemon represents (e.g. students would research crabs for the Krabby Pokemon)

History: Provide a significant historical date, person, or political or economic concept for students to learn about or research for each Pokemon.

Types of students benefitted: Ability (low ability, high ability, struggling readers), Myers Briggs (EN, ES, IN, IS, thinking, feeling, judging, perceiving), Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences (visual-spatial, bodily-kinesthetic, musical, interpersonal, intrapersonal, linguistic, logical-mathematical), VAK learning styles (visual, auditory, kinesthetic)

2. Have your students read and compare these two contrasting articles on how Pokemon Go is affecting the economy: “Pokemon Go is everything that is wrong with late capitalism” and “Pokemon Go is actually helping small businesses.” If you teach economics, you could discuss or further research the economic theories behind the main points in each article. If you teach English, you could have students evaluate and write an argument or host a debate supporting which article is the most valid. This activity would support Common Core State Standard 8.9 for reading informational text, which requires students to “Analyze a case in which two or more texts provide conflicting information on the same topic and identify where the texts disagree on matters of fact or interpretation.”

Types of students benefitted: Ability (low ability, high ability, struggling readers), Myers Briggs (EN, ES, IN, IS, thinking, feeling, judging, perceiving), Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences (visual-spatial, bodily-kinesthetic, musical, interpersonal, intrapersonal, linguistic, logical-mathematical), VAK learning styles (visual, auditory, kinesthetic)

Example of a Pokestop in Pokemon Go

3. If you teach English or History, have students select and research the significance of a Pokestop or gym in the game, and have them write or present about why they think the writers at Niantic chose that location for the game. As an enrichment activity, you could have students write or present on a location that they think should be added to the game.

Types of students benefitted: Ability (low ability, high ability, struggling readers), Myers Briggs (EN, ES, IN, IS, thinking, feeling, judging, perceiving), Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences (visual-spatial, bodily-kinesthetic, musical, interpersonal, intrapersonal, linguistic, logical-mathematical), VAK learning styles (visual, auditory, kinesthetic)

4. One of the most fascinating aspects of Pokemon Go is that it inspires people to explore the world around them, and even meet new people in the process. Using an app like Marvel, have your students design an app imitating Pokemon Go, where users have to walk around to collect something or interact with people. This could be a great way to promote social justice in your classroom. For example, students could research needs in their community to illuminate through their game (e.g. their Pokestops could show where all of the animal shelters in the community are, and users could collect lost or stray animals to bring to the shelters). You could also use this idea to have students demonstrate their knowledge of a concept. For instance, students could show the origin of myths from around the world and have users “catch” legendary characters or symbols from each myth; they could show that they understand a particular time period by including Pokestops at locations where historical events occurred; they could even show that they understand weather patterns by including Pokestops at places where certain weather patterns occur.

Types of students benefitted: Ability (low ability, high ability, struggling readers), Myers Briggs (EN, ES, IN, IS, thinking, feeling, judging, perceiving), Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences (visual-spatial, bodily-kinesthetic, musical, interpersonal, intrapersonal, linguistic, logical-mathematical), VAK learning styles (visual, auditory, kinesthetic)

5. Pokemon isn’t for everyone, but the concept behind the game is still worth exploring. Have your students play Ingress  instead, the previous game made by the creators of Pokemon Go (free for iOS and Android). In fact, the location of the Pokestops in Pokemon Go are based directly on the location of what are called “portals” in Ingress. Portals emit exotic matter (XM), a form of energy thought to come from an extraterrestrial life form, known as the “Shapers,” who are trying to take over the world. As a player, you serve as an agent for one of two factions “battling to control the destiny of humankind”: the Resistance or the Enlightened. The Resistance do not trust the Shapers and fight to protect humanity by stopping the emission and use of exotic matter, while the Enlightened seek to understand the Shapers and embrace the use of exotic matter to bring technological advances to our society. As an agent, you work to control portals for your faction, much like how you battle at gyms in Pokemon Go. You can learn more about Ingress by checking out their website here or watching the video below on how to get started.

This game would pair well with a unit on dystopian literature or a discussion on the advantages and disadvantages of technology. You could also discuss what it means to “advance” society: should we embrace change or trust in what we know to be safe?

Types of students benefitted: Ability (low ability, high ability, struggling readers), Myers Briggs (EN, ES, IN, IS, thinking, feeling, judging, perceiving), Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences (visual-spatial, bodily-kinesthetic, musical, interpersonal, intrapersonal, linguistic, logical-mathematical), VAK learning styles (visual, auditory, kinesthetic)

6. Show students this picture imagining a Pokemon’s life inside a Pokeball.

Begin this lesson with a writing prompt like the following: Write about the life of a Pokemon in the wild. Then write about the life of a Pokemon after it has been caught. Did you portray one life as being better than the other? If so, which one?

Once you have sparked your students’ interest, have them read about the morality of keeping animals in captivity, and host a debate on the subject. If you prefer, you could focus more on reading and analyzing the articles by having students “Determine [the] author’s point of view or purpose in a text and analyze how the author acknowledges and responds to conflicting evidence or viewpoints” (CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.8.6) or “Delineate and evaluate the argument and specific claims in a text, assessing whether the reasoning is valid and the evidence is relevant and sufficient; identify false statements and fallacious reasoning” (CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.9-10.8). Below are a few articles you could use for this activity:

Article 1: “10 Reasons to Skip Your Next Zoo Visit” 

This article by One Green Planet, a nonprofit environmental protection organization, lists reasons why zoos are bad, making it easy to follow and good for comparing arguments on both sides of the coin.

Article 2: “Why Zoos are Good”

This article, published by a blogger for The Guardian, does a good job of addressing common arguments against zoos. It is however, fairly lengthy, and does contain some high-level vocabulary, so it would be best-suited for strong readers. To aid in comprehension, I would suggest reading Article 1 first, then having students identify counterarguments to the “10 Reasons to Skip Your Next Zoo Visit” in this article on “Why Zoos are Good.” The structure of this article, in contrast with the first article, would also make it a great text for “Analyz[ing] and evaluat[ing] the effectiveness of the structure an author uses in his or her exposition or argument, including whether the structure makes points clear, convincing, and engaging” (CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.11-12.5).

Article 3: “Are Zoos a Good Thing?”

Hosted on the LearnEnglish Teens section of the British Council’s website, this article provides a concise overview of both sides of the issue at a lower reading level than the previous two websites. It also includes true/false reading comprehension questions as well as a fill-in-the-blank vocabulary quiz and practice worksheets/activities for additional practice.

Types of students benefitted: Ability (low ability, high ability, struggling readers), Myers Briggs (EN, ES, IN, IS, thinking, feeling, judging, perceiving), Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences (visual-spatial, bodily-kinesthetic, musical, interpersonal, intrapersonal, linguistic, logical-mathematical), VAK learning styles (visual, auditory, kinesthetic)

7. Research the evolution of the Pokemon franchise. Then compare different mediums of the game, including any or all of the following: the GameBoy games, the collectible card game, the television show, the manga series, and of course, the newest sensation, Pokemon Go. If possible, allow students to experience these mediums first hand (it is likely that students may own one or more of these Pokemon products to bring in). Then you could have students “Compare and contrast a written story, drama, or poem to its audio, filmed, staged, or multimedia version, analyzing the effects of techniques unique to each medium (e.g., lighting, sound, color, or camera focus and angles in a film) (CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.7.7) or “Evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of using different mediums (e.g., print or digital text, video, multimedia) to present a particular topic or idea” ( CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.8.7). You could assess this lesson by having students write a review of one or more versions of the game, evaluating which they think is best or worst.

Types of students benefitted: Ability (low ability, high ability, struggling readers), Myers Briggs (EN, ES, IN, IS, thinking, feeling, judging, perceiving), Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences (visual-spatial, bodily-kinesthetic, musical, interpersonal, intrapersonal, linguistic, logical-mathematical), VAK learning styles (visual, auditory, kinesthetic)

8. Have students read the article “Playing a science-based video game? It might be all wrong” and then identify what is scientifically accurate or inaccurate about Pokemon Go. Students could then work to create an accurate version of the game using an app like Marvel to make their ideas come to life. You could also use this article to spark a debate over the use of video games in learning as a whole–can a game be helpful or educational if it doesn’t portray an accurate version of the topic?

Types of students benefitted: Ability (low ability, high ability, struggling readers), Myers Briggs (EN, ES, IN, IS, thinking, feeling, judging, perceiving), Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences (visual-spatial, bodily-kinesthetic, musical, interpersonal, intrapersonal, linguistic, logical-mathematical), VAK learning styles (visual, auditory, kinesthetic)

9. Have students choose a Pokemon and write a story about it. In lieu of a traditional written story, you could also allow students to write a manga, since the original Pokemon stories were also written in this form.

Types of students benefitted: Ability (low ability, high ability, struggling readers), Myers Briggs (EN, ES, IN, IS, thinking, feeling, judging, perceiving), Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences (visual-spatial, bodily-kinesthetic, musical, interpersonal, intrapersonal, linguistic, logical-mathematical), VAK learning styles (visual, auditory, kinesthetic)

Create a Pokemon, including type, evolution, powers, strengths, and weaknesses.

10. Have students create a Pokemon based on a character from a novel, a historical figure, or even a scientific element or mathematical principal. Their Pokemon should include type, how the character or person would evolve, what powers it would have, and which type of Pokemon it would be strong or weak against and why. Once they create their Pokemon, you could even have them “battle” for a gym by having them debate each other over why their Pokemon would beat the other.

Types of students benefitted: Ability (low ability, high ability, struggling readers), Myers Briggs (EN, ES, IN, IS, thinking, feeling, judging, perceiving), Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences (visual-spatial, bodily-kinesthetic, musical, interpersonal, intrapersonal, linguistic, logical-mathematical), VAK learning styles (visual, auditory, kinesthetic)

11. Since its recent release, Pokemon Go has had some very positive and some not so positive effects on its users. Have students read about these effects in the articles below, and discuss if the game is ultimately a positive or a negative for society. For enrichment, you could have students create a P.S.A. about how to stay safe and be healthy playing the game, using video making software like iMovie (iOS only) or Do Ink (an app that lets you create green screen videos). They could also create a visual presentation using a website like Adobe Spark, Canva, Prezi, or PowToon.

Articles on Impact of Pokemon Go

“‘Pokémon Go’ Catches High Praise from Health Experts”

“Pokémon Go is turning strangers into the best of friends”

“How Pokemon Go is helping people with social anxiety and depression” **This is a great article, but it does contain one quote with an asterisked obscenity, just to be aware!

“Teen Playing Pokémon Go Walks Onto Highway And Gets Hit By A Car”

“Robbers target Pokémon Go players in Maryland and beyond”

Types of students benefitted: Ability (low ability, high ability, struggling readers), Myers Briggs (EN, ES, IN, IS, thinking, feeling, judging, perceiving), Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences (visual-spatial, bodily-kinesthetic, musical, interpersonal, intrapersonal, linguistic, logical-mathematical), VAK learning styles (visual, auditory, kinesthetic)

12. Create your own version of Pokemon Go using the free app Aurasma (iOS and Android). If you are worried about the liability of having students go out on their own time to play Pokemon Go for an assignment, this could be a great alternative. Aurasma allows you to create “Auras” by taking a photo and superimposing an animation over that photo, so that when a student takes a picture of that object, the animation will pop up on their screen, much like Pokemon pop up on your camera in Pokemon go. This works best when you take a picture of something still, like a painting, sculpture, or logo that won’t be moved or changed. Using Aurasma, you could create your own version of Pokestops around your school and have students find them by completing activities to receive clues, like a scavenger hunt. You could also have students create Aura’s to produce their own version of Pokemon Go.

Types of students benefitted: Ability (low ability, high ability, struggling readers), Myers Briggs (EN, ES, IN, IS, thinking, feeling, judging, perceiving), Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences (visual-spatial, bodily-kinesthetic, musical, interpersonal, intrapersonal, linguistic, logical-mathematical), VAK learning styles (visual, auditory, kinesthetic)

So there you have it! Happy hunting, and if you haven’t started yet, download the app and start catching ’em all! I promise you and your students won’t be disappointed.

Creating Apps with Marvel

Ready to ditch the boring projects? Me too, and I can’t wait to try using Marvel in my classroom! This free app for iOS and Android lets you design your own app by adding pictures and seamlessly linking them to simulate a real app–no programming skills necessary!

**Bonus: You can also open the app online if students don’t own a smartphone!

There are several ways to add photos to a project, including uploading them from your phone or computer, taking photos within the app, or even using the app’s canvas tool (much like Paint) to draw your own picture. If you prefer drawing by hand, you can also download free templates to draw your own wire-frames and simply take pictures of your finished drawings to create your app.

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Because of its versatility, I think Marvel could be a great tool for many types of students, including introverts and extraverts, sensing and intuitive students, visual-spatial, logical-mathematical, and kinesthetic learners. After all, apps can be used to solve problems, tell stories, provide entertainment, teach, and of course, help people collaborate and communicate! Here are some project ideas for a variety of subject areas:

1. Develop an app to solve a conflict within a novel–man vs. man, man vs. nature, etc.
2. Create an app that tells an interactive version of a story or historical event.
3. Devise an app to help write geometric proofs.
4. Design an app that lets people create something artistic.
5. Create an app that helps people communicate more effectively or write a speech.
6. Develop an app that teaches people how to eat healthy or exercise properly.
7. Devise an app to track or chart scientific or mathematical data.
8. Create an app to show people what it would be like to live in a particular time period.
9.  Design a puzzle or logic game to demonstrate critical thinking skills.
10. Develop an app to market a new invention or idea.

Do you have other ideas? If so, let me know by leaving a comment!

 

A Graphic of Info on Infographics

An infographic is a visual way to represent often complex subjects using few words and lots of flair. They are a great way to differentiate process and product, especially for logical-mathematical learners and visual-spatial learners. In addition, because infographics represent information in a holistic way, they require students to analyze and synthesize information in order to decide how best to convey their topic. Watch the video below to learn about ideas for use and watch live demos of 3 FREE tools for creating awesome infographics!

Finally, here are the links to the 3 free tools demoed in the tutorial!

1. Hubspot: In order to download your free 15 templates, you must create an account. The website asks for some funky information, like how many employees work for your company and what CRM you use, so just fill it in to the best of your ability (and guesstimate for the rest).
2. Canva: Easy and free to register, create, and share infographics. Plenty of free images, templates, and more; you can also purchase individual templates and images for $1 each (no need for a subscription).
3. Adobe Spark Post: Create simple, but powerful images in minutes (for free)!

Enjoy, and happy infographic-making!

Process: 9 Studying Tools for All Learners

All students learn differently. Here are 9 apps and online platforms to help different learners study their materials. For more information on the types of learners mentioned in this post, go to the About Page.

1. Quizlet: Featuring iOS, Android, and online platforms, Quizlet is a free application that lets you create study sets with terms, definitions, and even pictures. Once you have created a study set, you can review in a variety of ways, including flashcards, definitions, spelling, practice tests, and games. With the flashcards and definitions you can enable audio playback. You can also adjust the difficulty for several of the activities. This is a great study tool for virtually all students, including auditory, visual, kinethetic, low ability, struggling readers, Introverted Sensing, and linguistic learners.
   

   

   
2. MindMeister: MindMeister is a mindmapping app available for iOS and Android. It also has an online platform. A mindmap is basically a graphic organizer/chart that helps you map out ideas or learning topics. With the online platform, you can create three free mindmaps, but the phone app is free, and lets you create unlimited mindmaps. MindMeister even allows you to collaborate and share mindmaps, which would certainly benefit extraverted and interpersonal learners. This app would also be particularly helpful for visual spatial, logical mathematical, visual, kinesthetic, and Introverted Sensing (IS) learners. You can see some of the features here:
   

   
3.  Popplet: This app is very similar to MindMeister, but simpler. You can still share your Popplets by email or by downloading them to your phone or computer, but Popplet does not have the collaboration features that MindMeister does. While MindMeister isn’t difficult to use, Popplet is much more intuitive, so this would be a great tool for students who aren’t so tech savvy, or just want a tool that is quick and simple. There is no Android app, but you can download the iOS lite version free or full version for $4.99; Popplet also has an online platform which allows you to create ten Popplets for free. Like MindMeister, this app would benefit visual spatial, logical mathematical, visual, kinesthetic, and Sensing (ES and IS) learners.
4. AutoRap by Smule: AutoRap is a free app for iOS and Android that allows you to create rap tracks by recording your voice. Auditory or musical students could use AutoRap to create raps for any topic they need to study. You can read my earlier post on other ways to incorporate AutoRap into your lessons here.
5. Adobe Spark Video: This is a free iOS app that allows you to create beautiful slideshows with text, images, and audio (voice recording and background music) in in a matter of minutes. To start, you can choose an organizational template–promote an idea, a hero’s journey, show and tell, personal growth, teach a lesson, an invitation–or start from scratch. You can even export your slideshow as a video to share. Auditory learners benefit from hearing their own voice played back to them, and musical learners tend to retain information better if they study with background music. Visual learners can incorporate pictures to associate with terms they need to learn, and Intuitive (EN and IN) students will love the opportunity to be creative. As natural leaders, Extraverted Intuitives (EN) in particular would love the “teach a lesson” template, which they could use to study for virtually any topic. 
6. Spotify: Students ask all the time if they can listen to music while they work. Spotify is one of many free music streaming services, but I particularly like it because you can search by genre or by specific songs. Instrumental music can help many students focus, but musical students in particular learn best with background music. You can listen to Spotify online, or download it for free on iOS or Android, although the free version does have adds.

   

   Voice Recorder (iOS)

7.  Voice Recorder (iOS) & Audio Recorder (Android): There are many voice recording apps out there, but I chose these two because they are free and easy to use. Auditory learners could record themselves reciting terms and definitions, or spelling out vocabulary words to study from.
   
8. Whiteboard (iOS) & A Web Whiteboard (online): Both of these are essentially free-form drawing canvases. Whiteboard (iOS) has some cool templates you can use as backdrops, or you can upload a photo to draw over. When you save your whiteboard in the phone app, it automatically stores it in your phone’s photos. With A Web Whiteboard (online), you can download your whiteboard to your computer or share via Facebook, Twitter, or Reddit. Visual spatial and kinesthetic students would especially appreciate these apps!
9. Post-its Plus: Kinesthetic, Extraverted Sensing (ES), and Perceiving students will love this free iOS app which allows you to take pictures of multiple Post-its at once, organize and rearrange them in the app, and even add new Post-its later. You can also share and collaborate with other users. This means that hands-on students get to work with real, physical manipulatives, and Perceiving students can explore new ideas in a way that lets them easily organize later. Watch this one-minute video to see this app in action!