Science of Pokémon Captures School Children
By Shawn on Wednesday, November 7th, 2007 at 11:28 AM PST In Game Companies, Game Platforms, Games, Nintendo, Nintendo, Portable
Some schools in North America are beginning to teach elementary and middle school students about science using basic characters and themes from Nintendo’s popular Pokémon Diamond and Pokémon Pearl video games for DS. Nintendo of America, Inc., The National Institute of Aerospace (NIA) and Nortel LearniT, have teamed up to create lesson plans that make learning sciences fun for students using imagery they already know and love.
For example, some of the lesson plans teach elementary school students how to tell time using a sundial, or explain to middle school students how the universe is expanding. A built in activity component allows teacher and student questions to be submitted and answered by science experts.
“We are thrilled to offer educators a resource program that utilizes popular characters to enhance the learning experience for students in fields of study that will only grow more crucial as we move forward in the 21st century,” says Robert Lindberg, NIA’s President and Executive Director.
“We’re honored to have our characters take what sometimes may seem like dry topics and help make them come alive for students,” says George Harrison, Nintendo of America’s senior vice president of marketing and corporate communications. “The collaboration provides an opportunity for children to learn 21st century science using 21st century tools with characters they’re
familiar with.”“We know through our Nortel LearniT initiatives that technology integration in the classroom makes learning both exciting and engaging,” says Greg Farmer, VP, Nortel Government and Community Relations. “As an organization that believes technology can enable opportunity, we are proud to be associated with this project.”
A variety of printable lesson plans and classroom activities developed by NIA are available to students and teachers. They can be downloaded now through December at www.masterthescience.org. Other award-winning interactive online lessons in Math, Science, Language Arts and Life Skills can be accessed at the Pokémon Learning League (www.PokemonLearningLeague.com).
via Press Release
I don’t know if Pokemon games have changed since my time, but the last I remember about Pokemon games was that the most science that was included was that earthquakes happen because of Earth Pokemon and that grass beats water in a battle. The peak of mathematical endurance was subtracting an attack amount from a hp amount.