Pokémon Learning League: Difference between revisions
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The model used for the discriminating trainer is nearly the same as May's father [[Norman]]. | The model used for the discriminating trainer is nearly the same as May's father [[Norman]]. |
Revision as of 02:47, 28 November 2007
Pokémon Learning League is a web-based educational series that uses characters from the Pokémon anime to teach students in the areas of science, math, language arts, and life skills. The site is aimed at American children in grades 3 to 6. The site was free when it was first set up in 2006 but is only viewable through a paid subscription service from January 1, 2007 on.
It should be noted that there are many variations from the main anime canon, including the existence of the PokéPilot. Additionally, the fourth wall is often broken by the characters either asking for help or thanking the person doing the lesson.
Mission Guides
Mission Guides are characters created specifically for Pokémon Learning League to assist the student in four types of subject matter. As such, they don't appear in any media outside of Pokémon Learning League.
- Ada is the Mission Guide for Mathematics.
- Lex is the Mission Guide for Language Arts.
- Quinn is the Mission Guide for Life Skills.
- Siara is the Mission Guide for Science.
Lessons
Lessons in Pokémon Learning League are divided up into three parts.
Watch
In the Watch segments, students are introduced to one or more characters from the Pokémon anime who have a problem. They then turn to the PokéPilot (and thus, the Mission Guide for that particular content area) to help them solve their problem.
Try
In the Try segments, students follow a guided practice along with the characters from the Watch segment. The Try segment reinforces the lesson taught in Watch, often mirroring the order that the process was followed there.
Apply
In the Apply segments, students play a game on their own (with minimal interference from the Mission Guide or any character) and apply the skill or skills that they have been taught. The Apply segments often end in a short video that shows the anime characters solving their problem.
Lesson synopsis
Math
Ada appears in all of these lessons.
Types of Angles
Ash and Brock are camping and want to pitch a tent, but are having trouble with the directions, as it is presented in various degrees.
Characters who appear in this episode are:
PEMDAS (Order of Operations)
Team Rocket has targeted Oak's Lab and has stolen a chest of Poké Balls. As they escape, they accidentally close the lid, only to find that it is locked with a special lock that has number combinations hidden within very complex math problems. The chest is later found by Ash and May, who must solve the puzzles using the order of operations.
Characters who appear in this episode are:
Fractions
Ash and May are traveling through a forest when they decide to take a snack break. They find out that they only have one Watmel Berry. So they decide to split it so that each Pokémon gets an equal share of the berry.
Characters that appear in this episode are
Discounts
While Ash was watching Brawly surf, a big wave wipes him out, and his surfboard is broken. So Ash decides to buy a him a new surfboard for him. The only problem is that he isn't sure which shop would have the least expensive board.
Characters that appear in this episode are
Interestingly, the Pokémon world's currency is referred here as PokéDollars, and are worth the equivalent of a U.S dollar rather then the Japanese yen as in the games.
Area of a Circle
Misty's Psyduck is standing on the rim of a tank of water, naturally he falls in and struggles to get out. Misty helps him out and then decides to put a cover on the tanks of the gym. The only problem is that she has to find the area for the top of the circular tanks.
Characters that appear in this episode are
Add and Subtract Fractions
While Brock is making dinner for everyone, May decides to surprise them by making a cake. However, she only has two measuring cups to measure with. So she contacts Ada to learn about how add and subtract fractions.
Characters that appear in this episode are
This episode suggests that May is usually a terrible cook.
Equivalent Fractions
As Ash's group is traveling, Ash suggest that they stop to take a break. He lets Corphish out so he could eat something as well. Corphish then grabs onto Ash's backpack and the cans of Pokémon food fall out and off a cliff into a river. Now that they're low on food, they decide to split it so each person gets a fair share. Only they can't figure out how to split up the grapes and the loaf of bread.
Characters that appear in this episode are
Percents
Brawly has just held a surfboarding tryouts competition in which Ash, May and Max had competited in. They all wished they made the team. As plenty of people had tried out. May wonders how Brawly will choose the best 3 surfers for the team. So they contact Ada, who suggests that the best way to look at the data would be through percents.
Characters that appear in this episode are
Ash mentions other surfers who tried out: Lizzie, R.J and Jeff, but none of these characters are seen.
Mean, Median, Mode, and Range
Professor Oak has sent Tracey to collect data of the Pokémon that have been living around the area. He contacts Ada and shows her the data he has collected. The data is the weights of those the Pokémon he has observed. Ada shows him the range, mean, median and mode of that data set.
Characters that appear in this episode are
Area of a Rectangle
Ash calls out Secptile and calls out various attacks such as Bullet Seed and Leaf Blade. Suddenly, Officer Jenny appears and calls out to them. She shows them that the park grounds have been torn up by Sceptile's attacks. She then mentions that there a volenteer gardeners who are keeping the park beautiful and asks Ash if he could help out in maintaining the park grounds. Ash accepts and gets to work. However, he wants to make sure that the grass patches fit the exposed areas. He contacts Ada who teaches him about the area of a rectangle.
Characters that appear in this episode are
Science
Siara appears in all of these lessons.
Lunar Cycle
Ash and May are heading towards a Pokémon contest arena, but it is getting late and are afraid that they'll have to continue in the dark. Ash is confident that the moon will be bright enough for them, but May isn't so sure about this, so they contact Siara about this.
Characters that appear in this episode are:
Notably, this was the first episode made.
The Atom
Ash and May are traveling to another gym, and Ash is eager to get there quick. However, they are stopped by a wild Plusle and Minun who show them a very tiny mushroom. Ash speculates that it may be the smallest thing ever. They then learn that there are in fact things that are even smaller.
Characters that appear in this episode are:
The Sun
Ash, May and Max are walking through a dark forest, they comment on how dark and chilly it is. They hope that the sun will come out at some point. At that point, they come across a group of Bellossom dancing. Max isn't sure of what they are doing so Ash checks his pokédex on the grass Pokémon. Finally the Sun appears and things don't appear as gloomy as before. May wants to know exactly what the Sun actually is, so they contact Siara and learn about it.
Characters that appear in this episode are:
According to Siara and May's diolouge, it appears that The Pokémon world doesn't seem to share the same sun the world of the learning league lab and the mission guides inhabit. Meaning that the poképilot is possibly capable of extraplanetary or interdemensional communication.
Heredity
May and Max are heading to Petalburg City to see their mom and dad. They're excited because Norman is planning a surprise birthday party for Caroline. Along the way they pass Nurse Joy, who comments that May is looking more and more like her mother everyday, and that Max definitely has his father's eyes. These comments leave Max somewhat confused, but May notices that Max's eyes somewhat resemble their father's while May does resemble their mother. They contact Siara and learn how heredity works.
Characters that appear in this episode are:
- May
- Max
- May's Skitty
- Nurse Joy
- Norman (picture of his head only)
- Caroline (picture of her head only)
- Quinn (picture)
Photosynthesis
A Snorlax wakes up, notices a few berry bushes and naturally, eats them all. Then it promptly goes back to sleep. Tracey notices this and is worried that all of the berries are gone since the Oran bushes, as it turns out, belong to Professor Oak. Tracey decides to plant more for the other Pokémon, but isn't sure where to start. He contacts Siara and learns that plants make their own food through photopsynthesis.
Characters that appear in this episode are:
Earthquakes, Volcanoes, Tsunamis
Ash, Pikachu and Brock are traveling on top of a ridge when an Absol appears before them. They mention that Absol don't come down from the mountains often, but only do so when a natural disaster is on the way. They decide to leave the area as quickly as they could. Suddenly a rather strong earthquake hits. They wonder if it's the disaster Absol warned them about eariler. They then notice that a crater had been made, but it is blocking the path home. The Absol suddenly appears once more and a rock slide occurs, filling in the newly created crater. They contact Siara and retell the events. Siara teaches them about how the earth can change dramatically.
Characters that appear in this episode are
Elements
Ash, May, Max and Pikachu are in a clearing near a river, accompanying them is a Sableye, who's busy looking at various rocks. Pikachu finds a very shiny one. May thinks it might be silver, which gets Max excited, and accidentally tips a rock which crushes the shiny rock. Now that the rock is broken, they can't tell if it really was silver, so the contact Siara and learn about elements.
Characters that appear in this episode are
- Ash Ketchum
- May
- Max
- Ash's Pikachu
- Sableye
- Quinn (Picture)
- Lex (Picture)
- Ada (Picture)
Weather Maps
Ash was visiting Hoenn once more and was admiring the weather. They come across a Castform, which promptly changes from it's normal form into it's rainy form. Ash looks it up on his Pokédex and it mentions that it's form changes with the weather. Sure enough, it starts to rain and the Castform floats away. Ash and Pikachu find shelter and wonder when it will stop raining so they can continue to look for it. While he waits, he contacts Siara and tells her about the situation, and she teaches how to read a weather map and what the symbols mean.
Characters that appear in this episode are
According to the first map used in this lesson, the Learning League Lab is close to a northern bay. On the second map, several locations are were invented for the lesson, which include:
- Awesome Town
- Cool City
- Superduper City
- Chill Town
- Rad Island
- Peace Plateau
Minerals
The episode starts with Team Rocket walking through a forest, complaining about the heat and suffering as usually. Luckly for them, they come across a stream and cool off. Meowth spots some shiny rocks on the bank of the stream. Team Rocket jumps to the conclusion that it's gold, and leave to get tools to dig it all up. As they leave, Ash, May and Max appear from behind a ledge and come to the conclusion that they're up to no good as usual. They come to the stream also spot the "gold", but Ash doesn't believe that it really is gold. They contact Siara to find out about the rocks, and teaches them about minerals, and how they are different from rocks.
Characters that appear in this episode are
Speed
Ash, May, Max and Brock are at a park and in 1 hour, Ash will be battling someone. In order to kill time, the group decides to look around the different areas of the park. May and Max are heading to the beach, but it's 20 minutes away, so it'll take them 40 minutes to travel their and back. Brock has an even longer route since he'll be heading to the mountain, which will take him 30 minutes, but is supposed to be the closest to where they are now, and it'll only take him 20 to head back. However, Ash is heading to the woods, which is supposed to be the same distance as the beach, but it'll take only 10 minutes there and back. They wonder why it'll take different amounts of time to get to different areas, so they contact Siara, who teaches them about speed and how it is measured.
Characters that appear in this episode are
Language Arts
Lex appears in all of these lessons.
Story Elements
Ash and his friends are traveling through a forest, May is complaining that they have been walking for a while and asks Max for directions. They find out that they have been walking in circles. Ash suggests that they climb a mountain to get a better view of the area. They all agree and race to the top. They finally spot the next town, only for the weather to change for the worse. To avoid the rain, they take shelter inside a cave. The gang realizes that they had quite an adventure and decide to contact Lex and tell him about their experience. Lex then teaches the group about the parts of a story.
Characters that appear in this episode are:
Similes and Metaphors
Ash and Brock are backstage with Eevee at a Pokémon show. May finds out that for this competition, descriptions must be written about the Pokémon being entered. They contact Lex who teaches the group about Similes and Metaphors.
Characters that appear in this episode are:
- Ash Ketchum
- May
- Brock
- May's Eevee
- "Girl" (no name given)
Adverbs
Ash, May, Max and Brock are heading towards another Pokémon contest, May is quite excited about it. When they get there, the group discovers that there are reporters there, interviewing the Coordinators about their Pokémon. This made May a little nervous, as she wasn't prepared for that. They decide to practice by holding a mock interview, May gives a response that seems rather... dull. So they contact Lex to see how the can "spice up" May's response.
Character that appear in this episode are:
- Ash Ketchum
- May
- Brock
- Max
- May's Munchlax
- May's Squirtle
- "Interviewer" (no name)
Writing for Different Audiences
Brock was checking his email and finds that his brother, Forrest, has sent him one. Along with how much Brock's siblings misses him, the email also states that he has started an Onix fanclub, because he thinks Onix are great Pokémon and wants to link other Onix trainers together. Forrest has sent a rough draft of the letter he plans on sending to every trainer he could think of has trained an Onix, which includes Brock, Forrest's friends and even Bruno of the Elite Four. However, the letter Forest sent seems rather informal, which is an issue since this letter is being sent to Bruno. Brock decides to contact Lex to see how he can improve Forrest's letter. Lex teaches Brock that it isn't just the content of what you are writing, but who it is for that matters.
Characters that appear in this episode are:
Hyperbole, Personification, Onomatopoeia
Ash, May and Max, along with Pikachu, Squirtle and Eevee are all heading towards a Pokémon contest, and as usual, May is psyched for it, and is hoping that a crowd will be there. Along the way they pass a poster with Bette's Butterfree on it advertising the for the contest, the poster claims that the audience will jump sky high. They pass another contest poster, this time with a Beedrill, which may or may not belong to someone called Toby, claiming that there's a buzz going on at the contest. A third poster with an Electrike belonging to Elena claims that it's thunder will run. These sayings confuse Max and Ash while May freaks out that she doesn't have a poster of her own, and that no one cheer for her (Much to the dismay of Ash and Max). She decides to make a poster of her own, but isn't sure how to make it so that it's as exciting as the other posters. They contact Lex who teaches them about Hyperboles, Personification and Onomatopoeia.
Characters that appear in this episode are
Bette, Toby and Elena are coordinators that are mentioned but don't appear in the lesson. Also, on Elena's poster, Electrike is spelled Elecktrike
Personal Narrative
Ash and his friends are on a ferry heading towards another battle Ash wants to compete in. Max comments that Ash has been in plenty of battles, and Ash replies that he's had fun at each one. Max then asks which one did he think was the best, Ash couldn't decide and recalls some of them, such as his battle with Ritchie and his Pikachu, and his battle with Falkner, and catching Heracross. However, as he tried to tell his stories, he tended to leave details out or stumble over his wording, which made the stories somewhat confusing to follow. Even Brock who had been with Ash himself couldn't understand Ash's recollections well. Ash was too excited to really make it clear for the group. So they decide to call Lex. Who suggests some pointers on how to make a personal story interesting for others.
Characters that appear in this episode are
During the episode, Brock recalls a dream where he and Harley went out for pizza and Harley couldn't stop talking about himself and that made him fall asleep in the dream, which caused Harley to get mad and throw soda at him, waking Brock up for real.
During this lesson, references to Electric Shock Showdown, Ka Boom With a View, New Plot - Odd Lot, Going for Choke and Pokémon, I Choose You were made.
Contractions
Ash, Pikachu and Max were walking towards each other, not paying attention to where they were going. They bumped into each other, causing both their papers to fly in all directions. Ash decides to help Max pick up all the papers. He asks him what they are for. Max replies that he's helping Roxanne write descriptions of Pokémon for her guide for new trainers at the trainer's school. The only problem is that his descriptions are too long and must be shortened. Ash decides to contact Lex to help out Max. Lex introduces the concept of contractions.
Characters that appear in this episode are
Syntax
May is waiting for Ash at the Pokémon center. However, she is becoming increasingly bored and hungry just waiting for him. Not even her "May's expedition" game is helping, so she heads of to find lunch. At the picnic table, she only finds a sandwich, which she's not in the least bit interested in. She decides to call Lex to see what he's up to. She finds that Lex is working on a new song with his electric guitar. She explains her situation and even mentions that she's so boring that Max doesn't even want to read her diary. Lex brings up that writing can be useful for relieving boredom. May reads him an entry from her diary, which is very dull and non-descriptive. Lex then suggests syntax to her improve sentence structure and make the story far more interesting then before.
Characters that appear in this episode are
Context Clues
Brock is busy sight-seeing around a town. However, he would like it better if he was sight seeing with a pretty girl. He spots an Officer Jenny by the library, so he rushes to her side and in Brock fashion, asks Jenny if she could sight-see with him. Officer Jenny is just happy to show Brock around the town and it's many attractions. As she is thrilled to show off how "resplendent" the town's "vista" is, Brock becomings increasingly confused by her abnormally large vocabulary, he quickly rushes off to call Lex about his predicament. Lex suggests to use context clue to figure out what this "cognizant" Officer Jenny means.
Characters that appear in this episode are
Writing a Business Letter
Max has just received a new telescope called the "Star Explorer Telescope 3000", which will help him view a comet that is supposed to show up once in a lifetime. However, when he opens up the box, it comes in various pieces, and there doesn't appear to be any instructions on how to put it together. He decides to call Lex if he has any ideas. He suggests to send a letter to the company that makes the telescope. He then teaches May and Max how a business letter is properly written.
Characters that appear in this episode are
The business letter Lex uses as examples during the lesson has addresses from the United States.
Life Skills
Quinn appears in all of these lessons.
Teamwork
Ash and May were in a double battle and lost. As they argue about the battle. Team Rocket spies on them and formulate a plan to steal their Pokémon by forming battle partnerships with Ash and May separately, with Jessie teaming up with May (in disguise), and James teaming up with Ash (also in disguise). Max has a bad feeling about this, which later materializes as Team Rocket's plan works and they end up with both Pikachu and Skitty. Ash and May are still arguing, so Max calls Quinn and learns about teamwork.
Characters that appear in this episode are:
I Messages
Ash and Quinn were talking to each other over the PokéPilot, when Max and May get into a particularly nasty argument over Skitty who tore up one of Max's books, and mean words are exchanged. Quinn recalls similar arguments he had with his older sister, and using the PokéPilot, plays back parts of the argument and points out what Max and May could have said so they get their point across without them sounding mean to one another and how the conflict could have been resolved with "I messages".
Characters that appear in this episode are:
- Ash Ketchum
- Max
- May
- Ash's Pikachu
- May's Skitty
- May's Munchlax (flashback)
Expressing Emotions
May and Max are getting ready for an upcoming Pokémon contest, as there will be many new trainers and coordinators there. All of a sudden, a frightened Ralts shows up and hides behind May. It's trainer, a young girl, follows it and meets May and Max. The girl introduces herself as Vanessa and says that she's a new trainer and she's having trouble with her Ralts. Max mentions that he's worked with a Ralts once before. Vanessa is impressed and says that she can't keep it from running away, getting frustrated or even from crying. Max mentions that Ralts are capable of copying the emotions of people. Vanessa wants to know how she could get Ralts to copy good emotions. Max suggest that they contact Quinn. They explain the situation to Quinn, and he suggests that in addition to telling how they feel, they also must show how they feel in a constructive empathetic manner.
Characters that appear in this episode are:
- May
- Max
- May's Combusken
- Vanessa
- Ralts (Vanessa's)
This episode is one of the very few Learning League episodes that has its own character of the day.
Media Part 1: Forms of Media
Ash and his friends, along with Squirtle and Fortress are at a Pokémon center. They decide to call Professor Oak to ask some questions and to check on Ash's Pokémon. When they call him, the group discovers that DJ Mary is with him. They ask if they're going to air another Pokétalk show, but find out that trainers are now watching a new show instead of training their Pokémon, or tuning into Pokétalk. The new show in question is called "The New Pokémon Training Show", and it asks the viewers to send their Pokémon in for "special training". Oak has a hunch that they're obviously up to no good. A clip of this training show is shown to the group, which stars a "Red Trainer" and a "Blue Trainer" that have scarves over their faces, and a very badly disguised "Pikachu" as proof that their training techniques work. Ash's Pikachu obviously doesn't buy it, and neither does anyone else. Professor Oak and DJ Mary say they'll try to find out more about the show and hang up. Ash decides to get to the bottom of it, but wonders how this show is affecting how people behave. They call Quinn and learn about the different forms of the media and how to be aware of their messages. Will the trainers of Goldenrod City get the message and learn the truth of the trainer show?
Characters that appear in this episode are:
- Ash Ketchum
- May
- Brock
- Max
- Ash's Pikachu
- May's Squirtle
- Brock's Forretress
- Professor Oak
- DJ Mary
- "Red Trainer"
- "Blue Trainer"
- "Pikachu"
Just like most episodes in the anime, the hosts of the dubious TV show is none other then Team Rocket, whose disguises are easy enough for the viewer to figure out, but just enough to fool the characters. Apparently, Team Rocket not only devised a TV show, but also managed to put their message into all forms of media: magazines, posters, websites, video games, even coming up with a snackfood and theme song associated with their show.
Unlike most episodes of Learning League, this one ends in a cliffhanger, which is resolved in Media Part 2: Fact or Opinion.
This episode also refers to the Pokétalk show as a TV show, but is actually a radio show.
Media Part 2: Fact or Opinion
The episode begins right after the first part, Media Part 1. Ash and his friends had come up with broadcasting their own message asking who are the trainers behind the masks, but right when the trainers were revealed, their message gets sabotaged. Part 2 begins with The New Pokémon Trainers show still airing in Goldenrod. With the show cutting to a commercial advertising Puff Snacks. Our heroes are obviously annoyed at the new show, because not only are their messages questionable, but everyone is too busy watching the show to battle anymore. They wonder about if the messages being portrayed by the show are fact or merely opinion, they contact Quinn to learn more about this.
Characters that appear in this episode are
- Ash Ketchum
- May
- Brock
- Max
- Ash's Pikachu
- May's Squirtle
- Brock's Forretress
- "Red Trainer"
- "Blue Trainer"
- "Pikachu"
- James's Cacnea
- Igglybuff
- Eevee
- Venonat
- Butterfree
- Bulbasaur
- Wooper
- DJ Mary (voice only)
- Professor Oak (voice only)
It's revealed that the trainers are in fact Team Rocket, and just like in the anime, they get blasted off by Pikachu's thunderbolt. The episode ends with The Pokétalk radio show back on the air and Oak reciting a poem about the media:
"In time of information, when everything is a click away, you can always be a master, if you listen closely to what they say"
Win Win Solutions
Ash and May, along with Squirtle and Phanpy, are in a city. May spots a large jewel necklace in the window of the shop. May adores it while Ash doesn't particularly cares for it at all. Ash wants to get going while May wants to look at the jewel for a little while longer. They both get into an arguement over what to do next. They both realize that they won't be able to do anything if they keep arguing, so they call Quinn. He then teaches how to comprimise so both sides win.
Characters that appear in this episode are
Bullying
Ash and Pikachu are walking through the woods when all of a sudden, Pikachu steps on Meowth's tail by accident. Ash wonders why Meowth is all alone sulking to himself. Meowth explains that Jessie and James were being mean to him, taking away his noodles from him and calling him a "blabbering furballed runt". He exclaims that he has no friends, everybody picks on him and nobody cares. Ash decides to help by calling up Quinn and explains Meowth's situation. He teaches them how to recognize bullying behavior and how to deal with it.
Characters that appear in this episode are
- Ash Ketchum
- Ash's Pikachu
- Meowth
- Jessie
- James
- Noodle Seller (not named and no speaking part)
This episode starts off with a message that if you are threatened by a bully, get help from an adult immediately, and a disclaimer that this episode isn't an intervention program, only to provide helpful tips to recognize bullying behavior. Is it also the only episode to give credit to one of the members of the Learning League Advisory Board.
Making Friends
Brock is in the park with alot of people. He is trying to make friends with them, but is not doing a very good job, as he is hiding behind bushes and is yelling "Hello" to them. He ends up being completely ignored by everyone. He calls Quinn to talk about his problem, and learns how to make friends with others.
Characters that appear in this episode are
Food Pyramid
Ash is training hard with Pikachu, he decides to stop training for a bit to rest and get something to eat. He chooses a donut, but Brock wonders if he could have something better that could help his training. Ash doesn't understand what the food he eats has to do with how he trains. They call up Quinn to ask him about it. They catch him just finishing his lunch, he has a bottle of water with him. He tells Ash and Brock about his newest project: The Food Pyramid.
Characters that appear in this episode are
It's interesting to note that they have pictures of a hamburger, hotdog and a can of tuna in the Meat and Beans group. As it is a constant source of debate over wiether Pokémon are eaten in the Pokémon World.
Appreciating Differences
May and Ash are at a contest hall. Ash can't want for it to start, while May is feeling a bit glum. Ash asks her what's wrong, May explains that there's a trainer telling everyone that the younger trainers, including May, are babies who can't do well at contests and shouldn't even try. Ash tries to console her, but May is starting to believe she isn't good enough to compete. Ash concludes that the trainer is the one with the problem. They call Quinn to talk about appreciating differences and how judging people based on stereotypes is wrong.
Characters that appear in this episode are
- Ash Ketchum
- May
- Ash's Pikachu
- May's Skitty
- various extras, including the discriminating trainer
- Larvitar
- Doduo
- Jigglypuff
- Castform
- Blazkien
The model used for the discriminating trainer is nearly the same as May's father Norman.