HELLO VIRTUAL WORLD

De Zavala Elementary students’ virtual reality work showcased at Hello World CS Demo Day at Google

A group of De Zavala Elementary School students showcased their virtual reality projects during Hello World CS’ Demo Day.

Six students — Alvaro Barrientos, 1st grade; Nia Haynes, 1st Grade; David Laina, 1st Grade; Alejandra Hernandez Manzano, 2nd Grade; Alicia Cerda, 3rd Grade; and Joseph Carney, 4th grade — presented their virtual reality work during the event at Google’s Austin office on Saturday, March 23.

“De Zavala is the program’s pilot school. We’re the first campus in our district that is using the curriculum Hello World CS,” said Arielle Cruz, GT Teacher. “It was really awesome that I was able to nominate eight projects and six of them got selected. So, what they got to do is present in front of other students and parents one project and they got to showcase how it looks to the user. … I’m excited for [these students]. I’m so happy they got selected and got this experience.”

Using Hello World’s virtual reality software and curriculum, De Zavala students have spent the school year creating virtual worlds. Their worlds feature a variety of objects such as dragons, astronauts, rockets, disco balls, lions, tigers and much more. Cruz said students have been eager to learn and explore Hello World’s platform.

“When we started using [Hello World], I think the idea of using VR really hooked them right away,” Cruz said. “They were so excited. Every class period that we do it, they’re learning from each other, they’re asking questions, they’re learning more skills and [the program] definitely progresses.”

De Zavala students, who were the youngest students to take part in Saturday’s event, enjoyed their experience presenting at Hello World’s demo day and visiting the Google office.

“I felt so good because I’ve never done this in my life,” Alejandra Hernandez Manzano said.

“It was amazing,” added Alvaro Barrientos. “I loved it. [Google] was actually so nice.”

“It was like I was the main character,” Nia Haynes said.

Students also appreciated the opportunity to view other students’ projects and learn from them.

“I liked everybody’s presentations,” David Laina said. “The first one that I really liked was the Barbie house, and the next one I liked had animals.”

Following the event, Cruz is excited to see the students apply what they learned during the event and hopes to continue using Hello World in the future.

“I’m excited to see, if we’re able to continue to do this next year, which I’m hoping we are, that they’re just going to keep advancing and get this opportunity again,” Cruz said. “It’s been really, really awesome to see them grow and learn.”