Modesto City Schools uses ClassVR to Support Social and Emotional Learning
Modesto City Schools is a 34-school, 30,000-student school district serving students in grades TK (toddler/kindergarten) through 12th grade in central California. The district has a strong technology program and is committed to adopting the best educational technology tools to support teachers in the classroom and prepare students for the future – one of those technologies is ClassVR.
“Virtual reality is a powerful tool because it immerses students in experiences they might not otherwise have,” said Rachel Johnson, the Education Technology Coach for Modesto City Schools. “It naturally grabs their attention, makes learning more meaningful, and sparks curiosity for both students and the teachers I support. It opens up new possibilities for teaching and learning that get everyone excited.”
The district first became interested in ClassVR because of its ability to provide engaging virtual field trips, but Johnson says the experiences have had a far broader impact – improving students’ behavior, attendance, academics and even helping them practice valuable social and emotional learning skills.
Johnson spent nearly 10 years as a classroom teacher before becoming Educational Technology Coach for Modesto City Schools and has seen the power virtual reality can have in classrooms. “I know firsthand how VR can transform attendance and behavior, as well as academics, and I’m passionate about making it accessible to all of our students,” she said.
Getting Teacher Buy-in
Modesto City Schools first discovered ClassVR at an education tradeshow and quickly added the headsets to the district’s Innovation Center which provides teachers with access to multiple types of technology.
To support adoption, Johnson created a ClassVR user guide and tips-list for teachers, as well as a guide that shows how ClassVR aligns with the school board-adopted curriculum. To help teachers get comfortable with using the technology, Johnson offers to show them a model lesson before they check out the devices – something that has become increasingly popular.
“We talk about safe use, and how to navigate the content when we’re inside the system. We align it to our board adopted curriculum, usually around topics such as outer space or animals so the teacher doesn’t feel like they are going off the beaten path. I give the teacher editing rights in the ClassVR dashboard so they can edit which experiences to select. I model the lesson, show them how easy it is to use, and then they check out the headsets to do the lesson with their class.”
“I walk teachers through a short lesson so they can see how simple it is to use and how naturally it can fit into what they’re already teaching. Once they experience that, they feel confident taking the headsets back to their own classrooms.”
Growing Momentum
Johnson said her sessions became increasingly popular as word spread among the teachers. “I was booked solid and supported six classes with ClassVR in three days.” Her favourite thing is seeing how excited the students get. “When students see me coming, they say ‘Mrs Johnson, did you bring the VRs?’ When they see the orange ClassVR case, they know something cool is coming.”
Johnson likes that the ClassVR content aligns with standards and the district’s curriculum and that it is so accessible to all students, even those who are newcomers and are learning English as a second language. “You’ve got the world at your fingertips,” she said. “It’s universal.
Supporting Social and Emotional Learning and Expanding Students’ Vocabulary
Each experience as a springboard for discussion, encouraging students to reflect on what they saw, how it made them feel, and how they responded to new challenges in the moment.
“I ask them what they found rewarding and what felt challenging. For some students, learning how to navigate the experience builds perseverance,” she said.
For younger learners, VR provides opportunities to practice key skills such as taking turns, managing excitement, and following directions within a shared experience. Johnson notes that these moments help students strengthen control, patience, and self-regulation in a natural and engaging way.
VR also gives students rich language to work with. Johnson regularly prompts classes to describe what they encountered and how it made them feel, helping them build descriptive vocabulary. Students also learn foundational terms like “immersive,” “virtual reality,” and “augmented reality,” and explore the difference between real and virtual environments.
What’s Next
A year into implementation, the district is using ClassVR mostly with elementary school students. In the near future Johnson hopes to expand the use of ClassVR to the junior high and high school grades, and develop opportunities for those older students to use other technologies to create their own VR content that they can use with the headsets.
She wants to explore more of the standards-aligned content in ClassVR’s Eduverse+ content library, which brings together four powerful content suites: EduverseAI, WildWorld, STEAM3D, and CareerHub to deliver immersive experiences that engage students through exploration, inquiry, and experiential learning. She also hopes to continue to grow the number of teachers using the devices. Modesto City Schools has a history of providing innovative technology to support student learning, and with ClassVR the adventure is just beginning.
Learn more and schedule a demo: https://www.classvr.com/