Hello, my name is Trey Wright and I proudly play Pokemon GO!  It is fun y’all.  I really want to catch them all or evolve them all.  More importantly, as an educator, I see that kids are hooked.  So I downloaded the app a couple of weeks ago to see what the hubbub was all about.  I admit I freaked out a lot when the Google All Access issue was revealed.  I mean I didn’t want Pikachu and Squirtle reading emails from my Mom or seeing all the Zazzle and Shutterfly promos.  Those are private!  Once the code was cleaned up I was back chasing Rattatas and Weedles!  The more I play the easier it is to see the connections to mathematics. Thus I compiled a list of go-to Pokemon GO math connections.  These are by no means the only out there. Please comment and add to the list.  Together we are better.

Note – I haven’t ventured into a Poke Gym yet.  I’m more of a collector.  I plan to get some tutorials next week.  Those who are well versed in this area please share the connections!

Here goes…

1. Add your six highest Pokemon together.  Add your six lowest Pokemon together.  Find the difference.

2. Arrange your last ten captures in order from least to greatest in terms of weight, height, & combat power.

3. Calculate the amount of experience points needed to level up? Estimate the number of Pidgeys needing to be caught to level up? What about when using a lucky egg?

4. How many _____________ (Evee, Pidgey, Rattata, etc) must you catch and not release to evolve your _____________?  How many if you are allowed to return them to the Professor?

5. Find the Mean, Median, Mode, and Range of your ten top Pokemon in terms of Combat Power.  You could do this for next ten captures as well.  

6. Plan  a route (using Google my Maps) around your neighborhood to hatch a 2k, 5k, and 10k egg respectively.  Extra Challenges:  can’t walk down the same street, must include 3 PokeStops, Can’t cross where you’ve already walked, etc.

7. Make a Table of your next 5 captures that including Pokemon name, strength, # of poke balls used, # of razz berries used, # of break outs before capture, # of break outs before running off, and # of great balls used.  Find the totals for each data set and be prepared to share your findings.

8. Visit 3 PokeStops 5 times each and record what items are given.  Justify which Pokestop I should visit if I am in need of more _______________ (Pokeballs, Great balls, Eggs, Revive, etc).  Which Pokestop produced the greatest variety of items?  Which Pokestop is the most stingy?  If I only have time to visit one Pokestop, which should I visit and why?

9. Razz Berry probability.  Utilize a razz berry on you next ten captures.  Record the Pokemon name, Combat Power, and if you are successful using the very next poke ball (not great ball)?  Do the same again but use great balls instead.  

10. Poke Ball vs Great Ball!  Do the Great Balls produce “a higher catch rate than the standard ball” as advertised? When you encounter a Pokemon with CP greater than 200 try to capture with a Poke Ball. Record # used before success.  Do this 5 times.  Repeat this process with Great Balls and compare the data.  Repeat with CP greater than 300 if further data is necessary.

11. Should I power up and then evolve or evolve and then power up?  Justify your answer with data from any Pokemon you choose.

12.  The Traveling Salesman Problem is a great activity for the upper grades to investigate.  The challenge is to visit all the PokeStops in your city in the shortest route possible returning to where you started.  Here is a great website I found on the subject!  http://www.math.uwaterloo.ca/tsp/poke/

13.  Scale Factor – The Professor accidentally created a potion that causes Pokemon to grow 2 and a half times their current size.  How tall and heavy will you Pinsir, Tauros, Rhyhorn, or Rattata be?

Bonus – Cross-Curricular Connections

12. Write about the great hunt.  Which elusive Pokemon took you on an adventure?  How did it feel when you finally caught that one.

13. If you could change one thing about Pokemon Go, what would it be and why.

14. Tell me about your trials and tribulations in terms of evolving Eevees.  (I currently have 3 Jolteons and 2 Vapoeons.  The quest for a Flareon continues…)

15.  Obvious Geographical and Historical connects abound with this game.

DOUBLE BONUS #KidsDeserveIt Challenge

Find a Pokestop in a neighborhood you serve and meet the kids there to play.  Entice them with the promise of using one of your Lure modules while there.

I hope these ideas will make it easy to bring this high-interest game into your classroom.  Remember to comment with other ideas that will benefit other educators.