Fourth-grader Amaka Steve-Chinatu is face to face with a scuba diver underwater. As she looks around, fish swim by, reefs sway with the currents.

"It feels like I am actually there," said an excited Steve-Chinatu. "It's like I'm at the lighthouse and I am a scuba diver in the coral reef."

The students at Nativity of Mary School in Bloomington are taking a field trip to many places around the world and it isn't costing the school a dime. Students look through Google cardboard virtual reality headsets and they are instantly transported to Australia, Brazil and Singapore to name a few.

The virtual reality app has 100 destinations as part of the pilot Google Expeditions Pioneer program as well as talking points for teachers for each location.

"They can read a book, see it online," said Marie Maslowski, Nativity of Mary School technology consultant, "but to actually physically see it is just incredible and to be a part of what they learn about is something special."

Maslowski kept applying to the program on behalf of the school and finally learned two weeks ago that they were chosen. Nativity of Mary is one of 100 schools in Minnesota that will get to take part in the pilot program. Each school applied and was chosen for the one-day experience for students.

Eighth-grader Alex Knoll got a view of life as a Syrian refugee. Fifth-grader Tatiana McKay looked up close at the tundra.

"It was cool because then we get to learn instead of just reading through books, said McKay. "We actually get to see what it was like."

Google provides headsets and Wi-Fi as well as sends along a representative to help with training and any other questions that might come up during their virtual field trip. The company suggests limiting the experience to 20 minutes at a time because it is so realistic.

"It's not just 20 minutes in here," said Maslowski. " It's 20 minutes in here and continuing tomorrow and later today and the next day and bringing it home so it keeps bringing the experience to life."

Vineeta Sawkar •

Twitter: @vsawkar