- September 5, 2026
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Long before Benjamin Hitchcock learned to read at 5 years old, his interest piqued when it came to Pokémon.
He was a fan of the cartoons, which led to him collecting figures and cards. While looking at the cards, he was motivated to read so he could play the table top game.
The Homeschool Pokémon League was founded by Hitchcock, now 13 years old, and Sarasota 12-year-old Ethan Atkins. There was a 7-week pilot program for it from April 16 to May 14. Due to the success, they are continuing to meet twice a month at Dark Side, a comic book store in Sarasota.
“I enjoy the opportunity to teach others about this competitive, strategy-based game,” Hitchcock said. "I get to play Pokémon with my friends. How could I not like that?"
Kathleen Hitchcock, Benjamin’s mother, was the one to come up with the idea of the homeschool league. She said as kids get older, they want to do things that are more specialized and meaningful to them such as “nerdy pursuits” like Pokémon.
“We want the homeschool community to be strong,” Kathleen Hitchcock said. “We want our kids to have a wide community of friends that they can go through their teenage years with. This was a good way to get some like-minded kids together regularly.”
She knows how much Benjamin loves the game.
“He loves it when his matches are hard,” Kathleen Hitchcock said. “He doesn't like an easy win, because he finds it disappointing. He wants to see more kids come to events and he's willing to, and enjoys, spending his time teaching the game in order to make that happen.”
Polo Run 11-year-old Brandon Hibbert has been collecting Pokémon merchandise for four years and has been playing the game for just over a year. He was taught how to play by Benjamin Hitchcock, who he said is good at teaching slowly and making sure Hibbert remembers all of the rules and strategies. It helped him learn the game quickly.
Hibbert also appreciates the support he gets from fellow league members despite the outcome of the game.
“Even if I lost in a really big way and I didn't really get any points or anything, they still are like ‘Okay, maybe you’ll win next time,’” Hibbert said. “They're nice.”
In the world of Pokémon, trading cards is a big deal and the cards have a wide range in terms of how valuable they are. Hibbert said one of his favorite Charizard (dual-type Fire and Flying Pokémon) cards is only worth $16, but he would never trade it because it’s his favorite.
Rachel Hibbert, Brandon’s mom, said she likes the negotiation aspect of trading.
“He has to work out his own deals and that's what I like,” Rachel Hibbert said. “He is able to negotiate and he’s good at it too, creating an agreement on both sides to make both parties happy.”
She also loves how supportive the kids are of each other.
“When they're opening new packs (of cards) or something, they're just as happy for their friend who pulled a good card as they would be for themselves,” Rachel Hibbert said.
Rachel Hibbert also said it is nice for Brandon to have friends with the shared interest, because she often doesn’t understand all of the Pokémon terms and how the game works, so she often smiles and nods.
“It gets addicting, looking at cards or battling,” Hibbert said. “It's kind of complicated, but it's fun once you learn.”
Hibbert said the game helps develop skills in problem solving, strategy and critical thinking.
“Pokémon helps me figure out the questions in the (critical thinking) workbook and the workbook helps me think better in Pokémon,” Hibbert said.
Benjamin Hitchcock’s brother, Nick, shares his Pokémon interest. Nick Hitchcock, 10, said since his brother was born before him, he had a head start which made it difficult to catch up.
“Now I barely play it with him because he's a lot better than me,” Nick Hitchcock said. “I almost never win against him.”
Although Nick Hitchcock avoids playing with his brother, he is all for teaching other kids how to play. He recalled teaching a kid who “didn’t know a clue what he was doing” who returned two weeks later and he had obviously been practicing because his improvement was evident.
Kathleen Hitchcock said one of the most heartwarming parts of the league is seeing lots of shy kids break out of their shells during the meetings.
"It might seem small as it's happening because one day they're next to their mom the whole time," Kathleen Hitchcock said. "The next day they'll sit with the kids and then the next day they'll play. I see these small steps until they're fully integrated into this group."
