Developing Social-Emotional Skills with Virtual Reality
Third grader Skylar dips her paintbrush into a pot of red paint.
“Let’s paint a heart,” she says as she swipes her brush across the side of an ancient Incan cliff.
She adds the initials of each of her sisters to the rockface, taking in the lush scenery and periodically chatting with a condor.
“On a scale from one to five, how do you feel now?” asks a familiar voice.
Skylar takes off her virtual reality headset, leaving the jungles of Peru and returning to Allisonville Elementary.
“I’m a five, Mr. Brandon,” she says. “I feel great.”
Brandon Smith, the Alternative Behavior Teacher at Allisonville Elementary, first learned about using virtual reality (VR) for social-emotional learning and regulation at the Innovative Schools Summit in Las Vegas 2024. The program, called aloeVR, was designed specifically for use in schools to help students develop mindfulness skills and de-escalate after behavior challenges. After seeing the tech in action, Mr. Smith thought it could be particularly beneficial for his students.
“Our students are experiencing more trauma, or have stress or behavior issues,” he explains. “The interactive nature of VR makes mindfulness practices more accessible and engaging for them, especially the students who may struggle with traditional methods of learning and intervention.”
But tech like this doesn’t come cheap. To make it work, Mr. Brown needed to secure additional funding to acquire VR headsets, software licenses and more. Thanks to our donors, the Foundation was able to provide a grant to help launch this initiative, turning Mr. Brown’s innovative idea into a (virtual) reality.
When students put on the headset, they are completely immersed in a new environment. They can visit the ocean, rainforest, mountains or ancient ruins, interacting with their surroundings through movement sensors and hand controls. Each environment includes its own set of activities designed to help students develop mindfulness skills, improve their emotional regulation and boost their overall sense of well-being.
“The basketball one is my favorite,” says fourth grader Grayson. “It helps you move and it’s relaxing.”
“My favorite thing to do is drawing,” adds Skylar. “It helps me calm down.”
This VR program may look like a video game, but it’s nothing like your standard screen time. The pace is much slower than a traditional video game, and sessions are capped at five minutes to keep the experience healthy and non-addictive. When the activity is complete, students are asked to reflect on what they’ve learned or experienced. Positive results can often be seen right away.
“I recently had an experience with a student who was upset and had to be removed from the classroom,” says Mr. Smith. “I talked with him for a bit, and then set up the headset for him. His whole behavior changed. He wasn’t focusing on what he was upset about. He was calm, relaxed, talking more. Just that small five-minute activity completely changed his attitude.”
When asked why some students respond more to the VR than to traditional classroom mindfulness techniques, Mr. Smith explained it’s about a change of scenery.
“It allows the kids to escape to a different environment that’s not their classroom,” he says. “If they’re stressed with school and thinking, ‘I don’t want to be here,’ they can put the headset on and it will literally take them somewhere new. I think that’s what resonated most with a lot of the kids.”
While the VR program at Allisonville is still in its early stages, the students involved have already given it their seal of approval.
“Even though you have fun while you’re doing it, it’s not just for fun,” says Skylar. “You can learn how to calm down and use it in actual life situations. Like if you’re angry, you can take a breath. It helps you learn to love yourself, no matter what. And I love myself.”
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