Today’s Wonder of the Day was inspired by Caleb. Caleb Wonders, “How does VR work” Thanks for WONDERing with us, Caleb!

Do you know what reality is? It’s all around you! Reality is what you experience with your five senses. It includes anything that’s real in your world. On some days, your reality might look like this: you wake up tired. You go to school all day. Then, you might have band or soccer practice. Finally, you head home with loads of homework. Doesn‘t that sound like a fun day?

Whew! It’s no WONDER kids want to escape reality some days. How do you escape? Some people dive into a book or TV show. Others might write stores or make art. For many kids, video games are a great way to escape reality.

However, some video gamers want to actually go to a different world. They want to experience their video game adventures as if they were real life. And today, they can! With a special headset, gamers can escape into virtual reality.

Have you heard of virtual reality before? Sometimes it‘s called “VR.“ It’s the use of technology to make a three-dimensional virtual world. Users can explore the new world as if it were real.

Jaron Lanier first used the term “virtual reality” in the 1980s. He led a team to research how VR could become, well, a reality. However, it soon became clear that the technology of that time could not copy reality very well. Luckily, technology continued to improve.

Today, many devices imitate reality in ways once thought impossible. Users can see, hear, and touch the virtual world. Sometimes, they can even smell and taste their surroundings. It’s like they‘re actually in another world!

Have you ever seen a VR headset? Some kids use them to make their favorite video games more realistic. Just imagine! They can explore hidden places or talk to their favorite characters. And it feels so lifelike!

Headsets aren’t the only VR devices. Virtual reality body suits and gloves also exist. These allow a person to use many of their senses at once in the virtual world. Sometimes, the virtual environment can even change with the user’s movements.

Virtual reality can be fun! It also has uses other than entertainment. Sometimes, VR is used for pilot training. Learning new skills in virtual reality is much safer than learning in the air. It’s also commonly used in military training. Even astronauts train in virtual reality before a trip to space!

Have you ever used virtual reality devices? Would you like to? What virtual worlds would you want to explore? Can you think of any other uses for VR? There’s always room for VR technology to grow!

Standards: CCRA.L.3, CCRA.L.6, CCRA.R.1, CCRA.R.2, CCRA.R.10, CCRA.W.2, CCRA.L.1, CCRA.L.2, CCRA.SL.1

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