Tag Archives: google cardboard

by kapoho17 | June 23, 2017 · 12:00 pm

Google Expeditions Pioneer Program

cc Chris Betcher

Imagine being able to take students on a field trip without leaving the classroom. With the Expeditions Pioneer Program, teachers lead a guided virtual reality tour of a range of places such as museums, wonders of the world, and even some otherwise inaccessible places like the deep sea or the surface of Mars!

With the following equipment, students can have an immersive learning experience with 360 video that enriches the day’s lesson. In a Google Expedition virtual tour, onscreen annotations help to provoke questions, point out details and provide further background information about the location/content.

Teacher tablet,
Google Cardboard or other VR goggles,
Smartphones compatible with cardboard
*You may also need an inexpensive router to create a local area network within your school’s secure network so that students can connect their phones to your tablet. We’ve used the Aptus router with some success for small groups but more powerful routers may provide even better results!

Even without the formalized ‘expeditions’ provided by google, a a teacher could also easily ‘bring’ students to a relevant 360 video or image and engage them in a tour/exploration with some guiding questions or prompts. Students can also interact with 360 videos or images using an ipad or by scrolling in their browser, although the experience is less immersive than with the goggles.

Expeditions can be an engaging and interactive experience for students as they explore 360º space. The possibility of taking a virtual tour of faraway places in the blink of an eye can augment classroom learning in a way that wasn’t possible prior to the development of accessible digital technologies. While Virtual Reality should not replace real-life experiences, it can enhance and help uncover aspects of curricular studies through a ‘virtual’ place-based and experiential approach. Some places would be literally inaccessible without this kind of technology and, often, funding, logistical and transportation barriers can get in the way of students leaving the school grounds as frequently as we might like.

As with any digital technology, always keep in mind the value of the teacher as facilitator. Consider your purpose for exposing students to particular content and experiences. Be sure , also, that these virtual experiences don’t replace opportunities for students to engage in real world, f2f experiences by getting outdoors, in the school yard, the local community and even further afield. Such real world experiences nurture students in a way that digital tech cannot.

Further reading (articles available online in UBC Ed Lib):

Dutton, L. (2016). Google Expeditions. School Librarian, 64(3), 147.

Lamb, A. & Johnson, L. (2010).Virtual Expeditions: Google Earth, GIS, and Geovisualization Technologies in Teaching and Learning

Teacher Librarian; Feb 2010; 37, 3; Canadian Business & Current Affairs Database

Download Google Expeditions and install the app on your student devices. Android from the Play Store or get the app on iOS from the Apple Store. Install IPAd, IPOD, Android or IOS phone devices.
Sign onto the same WIFI network. Must be one that allows peer to peer networking.
Or you can also use a router. In most schools, you will need to set up a local network since the secure wifi network will not allow you to do peer to peer networking – you can do this with an inexpensive router. We have used low cost Aptus routers successfully in our workshop sessions but there are likely other possibilities.
Select an expedition and download the expedition. Each expedition consists of a series of scenes.
On the teacher device, the teacher will select Leader and the students on their devices will select Follow.
When on a tour, look for the smiley face icons on your teacher device. These show you where your students are.
Points of Interest. Each tour has a teacher script which is not something you just want to read aloud. Read ahead of time and pick out the things that you think would be the most relevant for your students. When you select the script an arrow will appear for your students and it will point them to this target symbol. Be prepared for questions from the explorers about things they see that are not on your script. Have your key questions about the Expedition ready. Take time to let the students experience the Expedition before you dive in with additional information.
Google Expeditions kits are available in Canada through Best Buy. They include student devices, virtual reality viewers, a rapid charger, teacher device, router, case. They come in kits for 10, 20 or 30 students, however, Google Cardboard can be cut out and assembled as a making project and there is some excellent open access content available online.

Learn more about Expeditions here: https://www.google.com/edu/expeditions/

Google Cardboard – DIY Guide and some VR Apps

In short, Google Cardboard is an affordable piece of Virtual Reality (VR) headgear that welcomes its users to simple yet eye-opening VR experiences. Following just a few easy steps, anyone with a smartphone (and a few free VR apps, of course) can now explore the VR content shared by creators worldwide. As the name suggests, this headgear can be built from low-cost materials that are relatively easy to find, so if you are up to the challenge, you can even make one yourself!

It may not be as high quality or immersive as the more expensive VR set ups (like the HTC Vive that you can use at UBC’s Emerging Media Lab) but it is fun to use and still brings quite a ‘wow’ factor to the table, especially considering its price.

Note: All of the apps linked below are FREE at the time of this resource posting.

Google Cardboard Glasses

Order Online

Google Cardboard
by Virtual Studio
on Sketchfab

Make Your Own

Pro tip: This video demonstration will guide you through the process quite quickly. For a brief overview of what is involved in making the glasses, see the instructions below.

What You’ll Need

Pro tip:

45mm biconvex lenses: available for purchase online. Search Amazon, eBay or other sources. They are about 70cents each lens but you can sometimes also find them in bulk. We’ve never tested the theory that you can even make your own lenses but there are instructions available online. See below for video how to.

Ring Magnet or elastic and velcro: You don’t really need the ring magnet or elastic, they are nice additions though. The magnet is used as a button because you cannot click the screen while you have the glasses on. The velcro can also be substituted with regular tape. Magnets are about 0.75in (19mm) diameter and 0.12in (3mm) thickness, and can be bought on Amazon or at Home Depot.

Building Your Glasses

Step 1: Download and print the Google Cardboard Template.
Step 2: Cut out your template and stick your outlined pieces together placing sections with numbers in white circles on top of those with matching numbers in black circles.
Step 3: Trace your pieces onto your cardboard (cereal box works well).
Step 4: Cut out your cardboard outlines.
Step 5: Fold your cardboard pieces along the red lines indicated on the template.
Step 6: Put your cardboard pieces together as shown in the video demonstration.

6 Amazing Virtual Reality Apps

Within VR

Extraordinary stories in virtual reality.

Formerly known as Vrse, WITHIN showcases the best VR video has to offer. The content on display in this app spans a variety of genres and is collected from a number of reputable VR sources. It features documentary and news content from the likes of Vice, the New York Times, and the Huffington Post, comedy and short films from creators and animators like Saturaday Night Live, and music videos from artists like U2.

inVR

The easiest way to create and share VR experiences.

inVR is a “platform for sharing VR experiences”. Users can create content using any 3D modelling software and uploading it to the inVR cloud for other to experience. Whether you are are a 3D artist or animator, or just an avid VR explorer this is a must-try.

NYT VR

An immersive virtual-reality experience.

Journalism has come to VR! NYT VR offers an immersive and thrilling experience as award winning journalists capture their experinces in 360 video for the world to see. Be a Syrian refugee, an earthquake survivor or rescue worker in Nepal, or watch the burning of ivory in protest of elephant poaching in Kenya. Videos are posted on a monthly basis.

Discovery VR

A new way to see your world.

View behnid-the-scenes footage from Discovery shows among other immersive video experiences as videographers show you all our planet has to offer. From the depths of the ship wrecked oceans to survival in the rainforest this app has action and adventure to share.

RYOT

Become the story.

The Huffington post brings you RYOT, a step into a new age of reporting. Like NTY VR, RYOT journalists and videographers capture their experiences at imporant events in some of the worlds most interesting places.

Shakespeare’s Globe 360

Step inside the world of the Globe Theatre.

Explore Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre in VR. Take a look around and interact with the virutal environment to learn more about the theatre and acting in Shakespearean times.