Pokemon Club: Play, Practice, and Connect With Others (Ongoing)
Join a community of Pokemon enthusiasts who meet once a week to play, practice, and engage in organized events under the mentorship of an experienced counselor (Nintendo Switch Only; Sword & Shield OR Scarlet & Violet)!
Connected Camps
Average rating:
4.7
Number of reviews:(4,018)
Popular
What's included
1 live meeting
1 hrs 30 mins in-class hours per weekHomework
This class does not require any out-of-class work. We do offer optional challenges that students can work on as an extension of what is taught in class. We provide guidance and instructions for students who are inspired to delve deeper into the topic. The purpose of these challenges is to give students the opportunity to supplement their learning with additional material that aligns with their passions and goals. Students may then integrate their learnings into their project and showcase their accomplishments to their classmates. With this approach, students can explore the subject on their own. We give students the opportunity to share what they’ve explored independently with the class.Assessment
At Connected Camps, we assess each student’s progress by engaging them in reflection of their own work and the work of their classmates. By practicing in Pokemon and applying concepts taught in class, our students are able to solidify their learnings through hands-on application. Our counselors’ focus is to provide qualitative feedback to further each students’ individual goals and interests, and we do not use letter or number grades. In addition to our in-class reflections, our counselors also provide post-session recaps that offer a summary of what is accomplished each day. Through these summary reflections, students are able to review the material and share with their parents what they did in class. We find this approach allows kids of different interests and abilities to engage with our teachings in a way that is particularly relevant to them.Grading
includedClass Experience
PLATFORM: (Pokemon Sword & Shield OR Scarlet & Violet for Nintendo Switch only! Nintendo Switch Online also required to participate. We strongly recommend that campers have played 2+ hours so that they have Online Battling unlocked!) SKILL LEVEL: This program is meant for Basic level players. This program requires Basic reading comprehension, Moderate proficiency with computers, and some prior experience with Pokemon. PROGRAM OVERVIEW: Our Pokemon Club is a guild of collaborative gamers who love to practice and play with one another. Like all Connected Camps programs, this class offers a project-based, exploratory classroom environment that sits at the intersection of learning and playing. After all, kids learn the most when they're having fun! With a strong focus on community-building, you’ll come together with other gamers like yourself who are passionate about all things Pokemon. As you play Pokemon, our counselors will set up fun activities and goals for you to collaborate and achieve with others. We’ll also host different challenges and in-house tournaments so you can flex your skills and abilities. In this club, you will: — Connect with a community of other Pokemon enthusiasts to play and improve together. — Participate in weekly organized events of fun custom challenges and mini tournaments. — Explore all of the Pokemon, abilities, and battle formats with others in a constructive environment. — Play under the guidance of an experienced counselor and discover ways to set and meet your in-game goals. Unlike camps, this is a club that meets once a week with constant fun new things to do! You’ll get the freedom to play with others in small organized activities and fun competitive challenges — you can even face off in a friendly battles with other students. No matter what you do, our goal is to make your experience with others in this club rewarding while you practice and play Pokemon in an inclusive and welcoming environment. PARENTS: This club is a supportive online community for kids to connect with other gamers who are passionate about Pokemon and seek the thrill of learning and engaging in friendly play. Our focus is on the experience of building each student’s self-confidence and your child will get to do that by connecting, sharing, and exploring their gaming interests with others. This is a club that meets once a week or more. During class, we encourage students to think outside of the box and share their creativity. As your child sets and meets their gaming goals, they will also develop their self-confidence and social skills while enjoying a game they love. Please note that we will be asking for your camper's in-game username so that we can connect and play together.
Learning Goals
— Collaboration Through Teamwork: Our students are encouraged to work together and collaborate towards a common goal! Students will team up and survive the storm through different activities.
— Learn Conflict Resolution Skills: As every student is different, they may encounter differing opinions or wants and needs from another student. Our counselors are available to help facilitate students in finding a common ground during unexpected times of emotional stress.
— Build Character and Confidence: Our aim for this club is to build students’ confidence and enable students to communicate effectively with their team. Headsets enable players to talk freely in game, but when it comes to competitive modes, the best method to communicate with each other takes practice which includes distancing oneself from vague or emotional responses.
— Practice Good Sportsmanship: Whether it’s victory or defeat, players’ reactions to the outcomes of a game can influence the team’s morale or their future performance. To debunk the concept of “angry gamers”, our counselors focus on developing students’ ability to maintain composure and avoid “tilt” which can negatively affect others in game.
— Become a Well-Rounded Pokemon Player: Most of our students’ goal is to improve their gameplay and resolve their pain points in the game. This takes practice and our counselors are available to assist in setting up activities or provide feedback on areas of improvement.
Activities:
— PvP Battles
— Weekly Organized Events and custom activities
— Mini Tournaments and co-op challenges
— Participate in skills trainings to improve personal gameplay (guidance from counselors)
— Assist others in their practice and Pokemon goals
Other Details
Parental Guidance
Internet safety is a top priority for us and our goal is to create a safe, connected community of learners that is moderated by our instructors. Throughout our programs we strive to educate our learners on internet safety and best practices for connecting online.
In our programs, our learners are often making friendships and connections with others in class. While we encourage positive online friendships, we think it’s important to practice these principles of internet safety:
— Do NOT ask others to connect online outside of our programs without first confirming with your parents. Our programs are a safe, moderated space for learners to engage but we can’t moderate connections outside of our classes.
— Do NOT give away personal information which includes but is not limited to: your name, address, phone number, passwords, location, email address, and parental information.
— If an individual asks for personal information, you should inform a counselor or your parent for guidance.
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Common Sense Media Resources for Parents:
https://www.commonsense.org/education/videos/keeping-games-fun-and-friendly
Keeping Games Fun and Friendly: learn how to keep your child's experiences positive and fun when communicating in online games with others.
https://www.commonsense.org/education/video/modal/4141366#
The Power of Words: help your child learn that words exchanged online are indeed powerful, and offer strategies to use when confronted with cyberbullying.
https://www.commonsense.org/education/videos/private-and-personal-information
Private and Personal Information: learn the difference between what personal things your child can safely share online and private information that should not be shared.
Supply List
Learners must own a Nintendo account, Nintendo Switch Online Pass, and have EITHER Pokemon Sword, Pokemon Shield, Pokemon Scarlet, or Pokemon Violet installed (Pokemon can only be played on a Nintendo Switch console). A pair of headphones and microphone are also needed for communication with the class.
External Resources
In addition to the Outschool classroom, this class uses:
Joined June, 2020
4.7
4018reviews
Popular
Teacher expertise and credentials
Connected Camps is a not-for-profit organization founded in 2015 with the mission to build a global online community where kids build, code, play, and learn alongside one another. Our programs are designed based on extensive research in the learning sciences. The founders and leaders of Connected Camps, Mimi Ito and Katie Salen, are professors at the University of California, Irvine, who specialize in the design of online learning experiences that are fun, social, and directly tied to academic outcomes. Learn more about the research behind Connected Camps at the Connected Learning Alliance resource site: https://clalliance.org/
One thing that makes our programs unique is our near-peer mentorship model. Our programs are led by young adults and college students, often with the help of high school volunteers. We hire counselors and coaches from top universities in computer science, game development, economics, social studies, and the arts, and train them on how to facilitate project-based learning with younger kids. Our young instructors have the same passion for technology, games, and digital making as our learners, and take on the role of instructors, as well as fellow enthusiasts and relatable role models.
The curriculum for this program was designed by a team of counselors pursuing degrees relevant to the material at hand. The learning experiences in this class are driven by these counselors’ academic expertise in the field, along with their desire to share their passion for the subject with a group of excited learners. All of Connected Camps’ curricula are vetted by the organization’s Product Manager, Matthew, who possesses a Masters in Secondary Education and a deep belief in the power of collaborative virtual learning.Reviews
Live Group Class
$20
weekly1x per week
90 min
Completed by 61 learners
Live video meetings
Ages: 8-13
3-12 learners per class
