Student's Math Test Includes Surprise Pokemon Reference

While gaining an education is important, many students find school and certain subjects, like math, to be dull or downright boring. Learning and memorizing anything while bored is difficult, so some teachers and educators look to making their lessons interesting to try and keep their students involved.

Such was the case in one student’s class, where they realized that the math problem presented was referencing Pokemon. Most will likely be familiar with math problems asking how long it takes to get from point A to B, but this one takes players to the Pokemon world and the Johto and Kanto regions, in particular.

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The math problem, shared by itsanapplefromatree on Reddit, initially looks as though it’s a normal question, and doesn’t make any overt references to the Pokemon series by name. However, the locations can’t be mistaken for anything but by those who know the series well. The question asks students how long it takes to get from Goldenrod City to Saffron City if taking a train. The question also makes mention of Route 32, referencing how the Magnet Train’s tracks can be seen above the route.

Fans in the comments praised the question and the teacher who posted it, while others joked about quizzing students on Pokemon series particulars, like the odds of finding a shiny Pokemon in the wild. Some noted having seen the same question in their own classes. As it turns out, this particular math question wasn’t designed by the teacher, as it it appears that it was taken from a worksheet of math questions. It’s unclear if the teacher knew that it was referencing Pokemon, or if it was just a random question that they picked to teach their students about graphs. Other math problems from the same worksheet don’t seem to reference Pokemon, so it’s likely just a small Easter egg that was tossed in by the writer.

It may come as a surprise to some, but Pokemon has been used to teach kids math in the past. Unofficial Pokemon math quizzes and puzzles are available online, while some official Pokemon math workbooks have also been published and are available for sale. Considering that many Pokemon players have memorized Pokemon statistics and the huge list of Pokemon available in the series, it makes a fair amount of sense to try and utilize the same subject to get kids to learn about math, too.

In the end, this particular math question just goes to show that Pokemon fans are everywhere. While the student was quick to appreciate it, it’s cool to know that some educators are fond of Pokemon, too.

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