Wolves in the Walls VR

Class Reflection on Teaching “Wolves in the Walls” Using VR

As a class, we had the opportunity to visit a blended five-six class at Gordon Terrace Elementary, where we taught a lesson on Wolves in the Walls in small groups.

Lesson Overview:

We began by reading the story Wolves in the Walls by Neil Gaiman and Dave McKean aloud to the students.

Book Summary:
Wolves in the Walls is a story about a young girl named Lucy who believes that wolves are living inside the walls of her house. The story combines adventure and mystery as Lucy tries to convince her family about the wolves.

Next, we showed the students a video on how to properly use the VR equipment and explained the classroom expectations before starting. For example, students were reminded to be respectful of one another’s personal space and to avoid touching or entering others’ space while they were wearing the VR headset.

Students also had the chance to watch an interactive version of Wolves in the Walls to get a feel for the VR experience without actually wearing the headset.

Finally, after finishing the VR activity, the students filled out a worksheet that asked them to reflect on their experience. The worksheet included sections where they could express their likes and dislikes about the VR, the iPad, and the story. Additionally, there was a writing prompt: “There Are [Blank] In the Walls,” where students could write a short story about what they would want to live in their own walls.

Curricular Connections:

Applied Design, Skills, and Technologies – Grade 5

Big Idea: Skills are developed through practice, effort, and action.
Learning Focus: Students are learning how to use virtual reality (VR) to enhance their understanding of technology. They will develop and practice skills through creating and interacting with a virtual reality story.

English Language Arts – Grade 5

Big Idea: Texts can be understood from different perspectives.
Learning Focus: Students will explore how the same storybook they read in class can be experienced from the perspective of virtual reality. They will reflect on the differences in how the story feels and looks in VR, and then write about their experiences and observations.

Reflection:

Overall, I had an amazing time with the students. It was my first experience using virtual reality with students, and it was incredibly engaging. Some positives included:

Students were highly engaged in the lesson.
They had the opportunity to practice both their technology and literacy skills.
Some students were already familiar with VR, which allowed them to become the “teachers”!

However, there were also some challenges:

The story itself is quite long, and some students began to disengage as it progressed. I wonder if using a story drama approach or having students take turns reading the story would help maintain attention.
While students were in the VR session, it was difficult to monitor where they were in the story and what they were doing. If they weren’t following the story in an organized manner, it could prolong the experience unnecessarily. I think having an iPad or another device to monitor students during the VR session would be extremely helpful if I were to do this activity again

Pictures (taken by Allie Kostiuk):