Anyone who thinks that 360° photography or virtual reality (VR) is only possible with expensive technology is wrong. We will show you how you and your child can have your first VR experiences easily and inexpensively and introduce you to suitable digital platforms and applications.
It doesn’t have to be expensive VR glasses. For many purposes, a smartphone or tablet is enough. Google ‘s applications are particularly practical for trying out for the first time. Is there a place your child has always wanted to travel to? Search for it together on Google Maps, e.g. Niagara Falls. Go to “Photos” and select the “Street View & 360° photos” category. You can now view the location from all sides by swiping your finger to the right and left, up and down on the photo.
To really immerse yourself in virtual worlds, VR goggles would be great. They can be made easily and for little money from a pizza box, for example. These glasses are called a cardboard. And crafting and painting such your very own VR glasses is fun too! You can find out exactly how this works in these instructions from mein-guckkasten. You can also order the optical lenses you need for the VR glasses for a few euros on this page.
The free app Google Cardboard guides you step by step through setting up the VR glasses and shows the first short VR examples that are ideal for trying out. Start the app together with your child, place the smartphone in the goggles you have made and go on a journey of discovery!
Video platforms like YouTube offer a large number of 360° videos. With Cardboard glasses and the YouTube app, you can travel into space with your child or dive with sharks in the Caribbean ocean with just a few clicks. Search for “360 video” or “360-degree video VR glasses”, for example.
Further content such as VR videos and VR games can be found in many apps in the Google Play Store or Apple App Store, for example using search terms such as “Cardboard VR”, “360 VR” or “VR Games”.
There is a lot of content and games for VR goggles – but not all of them are suitable for every age suitable for all ages. For example, you can also find first-person shooter games in the app stores and 360° videos of natural disasters on YouTube. Weigh which apps and games are beneficial, but which may scare your child. If your child is younger or still inexperienced, only use such apps together. This way, you can intervene in good time if necessary.
It takes a moment to get used to looking through the VR glasses, as the brain first has to superimpose the two images that a smartphone displays in VR mode. Sometimes it helps to move the smartphone in the glasses slightly to the left or right so that it fits. Some people also get “seasick” when they put on VR glasses. This is what you should look for in your child. For starters, it is best to choose such content that does not contain movements and fluctuations. For other content, it can help to move along with the image or video.
Precisely because the virtual environment can feel so real with VR glasses, the addictive potential is greater for children than for adults. In general, immersion in virtual worlds with VR glasses is only recommended for children aged 10 and over. Accompany your child’s VR experiences and limit their time. Start with short units and slowly approach the technology together. Start by looking at photos before trying out videos or games.
You don’t have to limit yourself to ready-made VR experiences, you can also create your own content! Delightex Edu, for example, is a learning platform on which children and young people can create virtual 3D and VR worlds – directly in the browser and without any programming knowledge. For example, they can build digital exhibitions, learning spaces or interactive stories. This is a fun way for your child to learn how virtual environments work. Your child can build the virtual worlds visually by placing objects using drag-and-drop and assembling functions using simple building block editors (visual coding). The tool can be used via a browser or as an app (Android, iOS, Microsoft). The basic version is free of charge. Delightex Edu is available in different levels of difficulty and is suitable for children from around 3rd grade. Instructions are provided by TüftelLaB.
