PCES cuts the ribbon for virtual reality 'Pirate Portal' - observer-me.com

GUILFORD — For respective weeks, Piscataquis Community Elementary School students and teachers person been capable to usage the “Pirate Portal,” a 360-degree virtual world classroom, on with 2 twelve virtual world headsets and 8 360 GoPros. 

The learning abstraction — the lone 1 of its benignant successful Maine — was formally dedicated with a ribbon cutting connected Friday, Nov. 4.

“We are the 3rd nationalist schoolhouse successful the United States to person this Igloo 360 room,” PCES Principal Anita Wright said during a pre-ceremony objection of the Pirate Portal for the day’s guests. There are different virtual world classrooms astir the country, but they are not 360-degree systems. The PCES learning country is lone the 3rd Igloo Immersive Space to beryllium located successful a U.S. nationalist school, on with 1 successful Texas and different successful Ohio that was finished conscionable 2 weeks earlier the 1 astatine PCES.

Observer photo/Stuart Hedstrom
OPENING THE PORTAL — Piscataquis Community Elementary School students Asher Chambers and Hayden Hunt chopped the ceremonial ribbon to unfastened the Pirate Portal, a 360-degree virtual world classroom, connected Nov. 4. The learning abstraction is the lone 1 of its benignant successful Maine.

Wright learned astir Igloo and its exertion capabilities bringing to beingness experiences specified arsenic going wrong the quality assemblage oregon gathering a lion look to look during the aboriginal days of the pandemic erstwhile she was researching however to assistance reengage students aft they returned to the schoolhouse gathering post-remote learning.

The bulk of the task retrofitted into an existing abstraction was funded done an astir $120,000 Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief assistance made up of COVID-19 alleviation monies. The funds were earmarked for addressing social-emotional and learning issues for students coming retired of the pandemic.

PCES was awarded 1 of lone 2 Avantis World grants successful the United States. The 3-year assistance programme volition supply the schoolhouse with 700 lessons that tin beryllium utilized with 2 twelve head-mounted VR headsets and 360 GoPros, and contented volition beryllium created specially for PCES.

Observer photo/Stuart Hedstrom
DIFFERENT VIEW – Piscataquis Community Elementary School second-grader Avalee Prew uses 1 of the schools’ caller virtual world headsets arsenic portion of a mathematics acquisition involving creating connection problems.

“You can’t adjacent spell to a tract that’s going to springiness this to you. We person a full of 700 lessons due to the fact that we person that assistance and past we tin petition them to marque immoderate lessons for us,” Wright said. “We’re precise blessed with that.”

She mentioned a speechmaking acquisition arsenic an illustration of however the virtual world schoolroom tin beryllium used. Students whitethorn beryllium asked wherever “Goldilocks and the Three Bears” is acceptable and past shown a forest. They could past spot 360-degree pictures of a formation and recognize the communicative would not beryllium the aforesaid arsenic if it took spot adjacent a assemblage of water.

“They are going to recognize the mounting successful a overmuch much heavy mode and past erstwhile they constitute their ain stories of people they volition deliberation what mounting bash you want? How would you picture it? So their penning would beryllium much rich.”

Observer photo/Stuart Hedstrom
PILOT’S VIEW — Piscataquis Community Elementary School third-graders heard from a FedEx aviator and saw the wrong of a level successful the caller school’s caller Pirate Portal virtual world classroom.

Technology Director Jennifer Watson said students and teachers tin instrumentality a 360-degree representation with their telephone and this tin beryllium loaded successful the room. The 4 walls successful the Pirate Portal are really screens, akin to an IMAX theater. 

Wright said with the 8 360 GoPros “we tin nonstop teachers outside, kids extracurricular truthful yet the extremity is the students would beryllium capable to marque the footage that would play successful this room.”

The schoolhouse is looking to spouse with country businesses to get contented enabling students to “see and acquisition worldly they can’t spell retired successful the tract and experience,” Watson said.

Observer photo/Stuart Hedstrom
WHERE TO GO — A satellite representation is projected successful the Pirate Portal astatine Piscataquis Community Elementary School.

“With partners we could marque it real,” she said. Mentioning Stacey Fitts, elder director, plus absorption astatine Onward Energy, who was watching the demonstration, “We could springiness Stacey a GoPro camera and helium works with windmills truthful possibly helium could instrumentality the kids wrong to get an wrong presumption oregon climbing up. The learning becomes real, the students go much engaged, and they person a consciousness of what goes into the career, immoderate the subject is astatine the moment, and sets immoderate aspirations due to the fact that that’s yet the goal. They person a imagination and spot a way to get there.”

A FedEx aviator spoke to third-graders arsenic portion of a portion connected thrust and drag. The students saw photos of the cockpit arsenic they heard the pilot’s words.

“We bash privation to speech astir careers truthful they tin spot what goes into careers,” Wright said. She said the aviator shared his subject training, but said his champion person learned to beryllium a aviator successful assemblage truthful “he talked astir antithetic ways to get there.”

While learning much astir the imaginable for PCES, Wright spoke with Thomas College Early Childhood Education Professor Pamela Thompson and astir her probe connected utilizing VRvirtual world for STEM instruction. 

Thompson has been grooming teachers with an on-site course. “We organized our students to enactment with the teachers who are moving with 360 virtual world here, and what the students are doing they are uncovering contented that is embedded with the units the teachers are doing,” she said.

“It’s been a large accidental for our students to spot the powerfulness of this exertion and besides to collaborate with teachers,” Thompson said.

The main said PCES wants to usage the Pirate Portal to found a narration with a sister schoolhouse successful Wales. She said the United Kingdom instauration is besides located successful a agrarian portion of the country.

“There’s truly nary limits connected what they tin do,” Watson said. She said the Pirate Portal is soundproof, and this has been tested with students going connected a virtual roller coaster thrust and their screams of excitement being inaudible successful the hallway.

A pupil from each people 2-6 homeroom was selected arsenic an ambassador for the ribbon cutting with Asher Chambers and Hayden Hunt holding the scissors for the snipping. The chopped was broadcast to the remainder of the schoolhouse gathered successful the gym.

With everyone assembled successful the ample space, the pupil ambassadors introduced the day’s guests representing Monson Arts, Piscataquis County Sheriff’s Office, Onward Energy, Piscataquis County Economic Development Council, UGE Solar, Thomas College, Maine Legislature and Beal University.

Wright work excerpts of “Oh, the Places You’ll Go” and asked students to deliberation astir however to determination a upland due to the fact that Dr. Seuss did not specify how.

Walking to the bleachers with microphone successful hand, Wright had students reply by saying respective variations of “Believe successful yourself.”