Assessing Student's Needs for Assistive Technology (ASNAT)

Chapter 6 – Assistive Technology for Recreation …
If the child likes specific smells, try:
♦ Cooking activities that use the blender
♦ Fan that blows a scented breeze
♦ Associating different smells with different activities (and/or different switch, different movement)
It the child likes touch, try:
♦ Vibrating handles on joy stick
♦ Vibrating or textured balls/throwing objects
♦ Vibrating or tactile switch covers
♦ Textured cues on playground equipment
♦ Use of Gloves (may help a child who is tactilely sensitive interact with clay or finger paint)
Another area in which senses can play a role is with children with attention difficulties such as ADHD
or Autism. These children may be distracted by sounds in the background, the bright glare of the
window as they go outside, or the smell of a teacher’s perfume. This distraction may cause them to miss
cues in their surroundings. Examples might be not hearing the bell, not recognizing that kids are heading
in after recess, or not seeing that everyone else has put their books away and are putting on their shoes
for physical education even though the child is capable of noticing those things at other times. A child
with physical or cognitive problems may be overly sensitive to some types of sensory stimuli. That in
turn may affect how the child performs an activity. If that child is light and sound sensitive, a toy with
bright flashing lights and a siren sound will not be the best choice at the other end of a switch. On the
other hand, if a child responds with “yum” sounds when the school lunch is tacos, the same spicy smell
in the blender may provide a very motivating reason to hit the switch for a snack.
Adapted Toys and Games
A second area to consider is physical access to equipment and toys for recreation and leisure. Ease of
use is a key factor for staff, child and family in the consistent use of equipment. Adaptations that can be
put in place easily, done quickly and run properly will be used many times. The adaptations that are
difficult or not worth the effort, will be forgotten. Finding the right tools for the right tasks is often a trial
and error process. But the outcome is worth the effort.
Accessing the appropriate position and use of equipment and tools is another common problem for
students with severe/cognitive disabilities and accompanying physical challenges. Determining
workable positions requires the input of physical or occupational therapists, the student’s family,
teachers, and others in the typical environments who can observe to see what is working.
There is a hierarchy of movement to consider when utilizing battery operated toys with children who are
functioning at a low cognitive level. When assessing the appropriate use of toys, recognize that toys that
move horizontally are easiest to track, then toys that have a vertical movement. Bump and go toys
require a higher cognitive understanding to maintain the interest of children. If a child does not respond
to a toy, check its movement pattern and try one that moves in another plane.
A great resource for play activities is Play & Learn: A Motor-Based Preschool Curriculum for Children
of All Abilities (Coleman & Krueger, 1999). It has dozens of wonderful play activities with suggestions
for adaptations and creative involvement.
Assessing Students’ Needs for Assistive Technology (2004) 159