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Special
Needs Applications - Key Features and Benefits
Cognitive:
- Provides
two levels of difficulty and three games in each level which allows a
child to begin at the easiest point to master control and confidence
and progress to the next level as ability and frustration level permit.
- Provides
auditory, visual and kinesthetic learning strategies that help children
with disabilities learn, retain and recall.
- Helps
a child with attention difficulties remain focused in play due to
auditory question, music and visual appeal.
- Provides
verbal reinforcement for correct answers.
- Helps
children gain practice in sequencing steps during play as they need to
cognitively process the question and answer, find the correct number on
the mat, move to reach it, and then press the button. The
sequence of steps is consistent throughout play, helping children with
remembering the steps and recalling what to do.
Communicative:
- Contains
several options in the activity guide to support structured group play
which can be beneficial to children with communicative disabilities in
learning social skills, and game etiquette.
- Mat
provides a very defined play space that helps a child who has autism or
pervasive developmental disorder maintain focused attention during play.
- Provides
a child with practice in auditory processing, often a difficulty for
children who have communication difficulties.
Physical:
- As
children respond to questions they practice balance, coordinate their
movements and shift their weight from one side to the other to provide
the correct answer.
- Mat
can be played using hands, however, for children who are in a
stationary position, they may inadvertently hit one number in trying to
reach another. While this can be frustrating for the child,
this may open the opportunity for social play. Children can
play together and each can stay in a stationary position in front of
two or three buttons that they are then responsible for hitting.
Children
who have physical limitations often also have delays in social skills
so this may be a nice way to incorporate working together.
- Requires
a light touch to activate the buttons so children who have muscle
weakness can be more successful – especially if they are only
responsible for a section of the mat and they do not need to move to
another area.
- Numbers
are all spaced well apart from each other, and are large targets
helpful for children with physical limitations.
Sensory:
- Provides
opportunity to gain sense of one’s body in space and a sense
of motion and gravity. Children with sensory integration disorder find
doing whole body, active movement enhances their ability to focus and
attend.
- Numbers
are large and bold and easy to read from a standing position.
- Provides
auditory and visual cues to provide more sensory stimulation from the
environment and gross motor movements are used to answer.
Children with disabilities often learn, retain and recall information
if they have had a chance to use different senses in comprehension.
AblePlay Rating
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