Websites for Literacy - Pokémon Pokédex
Written by: Brianna Guild, MHSc SLP
Date: September 29, 2023
Pokémon is one of my personal interests, and an interest I share with many of my students! There are many ways that I like to use Pokémon in literacy lessons to engage my Pokémon-loving students. Here are some activities you can do using the Pokédex on the Pokémon website, which includes all the Pokémon and their Pokédex entries.
1. Phonological Awareness
- Phoneme isolation skills: identify the initial or final phoneme (sound) in Pokémon names. For example, the initial phoneme in Squirtle is /s/.
- Segmenting skills: segment Pokémon names into phonemes or syllables. For example, Charmander is segmented into the syllables Char - man - der.
- Blending skills: this can be played as a “secret Pokémon” game where you give a student phonemes or syllables and they have to blend them together to determine the “secret Pokémon”! For example, the syllables Bulb - a - saur are blended into Bulbasaur.
2. Phonics
- Syllable division: divide Pokémon names into syllables, sound out each syllable, and then blend the syllables together to read the name. This is great practice for reading multisyllabic words!
- Syllable types: there are 6 syllable types in English (closed, open, silent e, r-controlled, vowel team, stable final). After dividing Pokémon names into syllables, determine each syllable type. For example, Wartortle: war = r-controlled, tor = r-controlled, tle = stable final.
- Word lists: create a word list of Pokémon names with the syllable types a student is learning and/or reviewing (e.g., r-controlled: Charmander, Charmeleon, Wartortle) to use for reading and spelling activities.
- PHONICS TIP: use the “Name and Number” search bar at the top of the Pokédex website to search for specific spelling patterns (e.g., ck, tch, dge, ar, or, ai, ee), select the magnifying glass to search, and you see all the Pokémon names containing the specified spelling!
3. Vocabulary & Morphology
- Vocabulary: read Pokédex entries to build vocabulary knowledge. Highlight new and key vocabulary words in the entries as you read, and support students to define these words. Grab some vocabulary organizers here.
- Morphology: use Pokémon names to practice morphology skills - determining word parts and their meanings. Pokémon names (the word) often give us information about the Pokémon itself (the meaning). For example, Voltorb: volt (unity of electricity) + orb (sphere) = electric sphere.
4. Reading Fluency
- Word level reading fluency: create a word list of Pokémon names with the syllable types a student is learning and/or reviewing (e.g., stable final, CLE: Squirtle, Wartortle, Weedle) to use in repeated and/or timed word level reading activities to work on reading accuracy and rate.
- Expression: encourage students to read with expression by creating a list of different feelings and associated Pokémon (e.g., read sentences happy like Squirtle, angry like Wartortle, sad like Gloom, etc).
5. Writing
- Pokémon writing prompts: it can be challenging to get some students engaged in writing, so try getting them to write about Pokémon! Find Pokémon with syllable type(s) the student is working on (e.g., for r-controlled vowels: Charmander, Squirtle, Wartortle), and have the student write sentences or a story about these Pokémon.
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