It’s the field trip fifth-grade students in Woodstock Community Unit School District 200 buzz about.

They chat excitedly during the bus ride to Olson Elementary in Woodstock, Ill. Then they reach the Challenger Learning Center, which is housed in the school, and they step into a new world.

The center is elaborately decorated with a space theme that includes a replica mission control room. The students separate into groups before collaborating on simulated missions to Mars. Overall, it’s an engaging, immersive learning experience that can’t easily be replicated in the typical classroom.

In the learning center, students have to think creatively and critically, using trial and error to solve problems, and learn from each other, says Cindy Maire, a fifth-grade teacher at Mary Endres Elementary in Woodstock. “They really have to work together to be successful,” she says.

Immersive learning involves using technology to enhance instruction in a simulated space — either a physical one such as the Challenger Learning Center or a virtual environment using mixed reality. The approach addresses a key goal of education: to make lessons meaningful and memorable.