Everyday Technology-Able Data

                



There's lots of good stuff in this website!
Have you visited this very interesting and helpful website?   AbleData provides objective information about assistive technology products and rehabilitation equipment.  It's a great resource for anyone  working with individuals with disabilities.  It can help to provide you with the most current assistive technology trends and application information.    AbleData is a database of assistive technology  in which products are classified by each product's intended function or any special features it possesses. The products are classified in 20 areas listed below. Clicking on a topic will link you to a list of the major categories within that topic.  You can then see the list of specific product types in that category. Just point and click.  To search for a certain word or phrase, type it in the "Search" box at the top of the page or click on the "Advanced Search" link to the right of that box.

 ABLEDATA's mission is to provide objective information on assistive products. They do not sell  assistive products. Products

The Products Page

The Products page is the most important part of this site.  Users can search for assistive technology resources that can help students based on a particular need.  This site provides 20 broad categories like daily living, walking, communication, or mobility.  After selecting a major category, sub categories appear with various assistive technology options.  The options are links to learn more information about the assistive technology.  For example, if you have a student who is having difficulty moving around the room.  You can select mobility as the main category and then see a variety of options like carts, manual wheel chairs, scooters, powered wheel chairs, sport wheel chairs, and accessories.  When you select a link, there will be a brief synopsis of the assistive technology device, the approximate cost, and vendors for the specific product.  This information can then be used to make suggestions to the IEP team, administrators, or even the parents.

Aids for Daily Living

Products to aid in activities of daily living.
Major Categories: Bathing, Carrying, Child Care, Clothing, Dispenser Aids, Dressing, Drinking, Feeding, Grooming/Hygiene, Handle Padding, Health Care, Holding, Reaching, Time, Smoking, Toileting, Transfer.

Blind and Low Vision

Products for people with visual disabilities.

Major Categories: Computers, Educational Aids, Health Care, Information Storage, Kitchen Aids, Labeling, Magnification, Office Equipment, Orientation and Mobility, Reading, Recreation, Sensors, Telephones, Time, Tools, Travel, Typing, Writing (Braille).

Communication

Products to help people with disabilities related to speech, writing and other methods of communication.

Major Categories: Alternative and Augmentative Communication, Headwands, Mouthsticks, Signal Systems, Telephones, Typing, Writing.

Computers

Products to allow people with disabilities to use desktop and laptop computers and other kinds of information technology.
Major Categories: Software, Hardware, Computer Accessories.

Controls

Products that provide people with disabilities with the ability to start, stop or adjust electric or electronic devices.
Major Categories: Environmental Controls, Control Switches.

Deaf and Hard of Hearing

Products for people with hearing disabilities.

Major Categories: Amplification, Driving, Hearing Aids, Recreational Electronics, Sign Language, Signal Switches, Speech Training, Telephones, Time.

DeafBlind

Products for people who are both deaf and blind.

Education

Products to provide people with disabilities with access to educational materials and instruction in school and in other learning environments.
Major Categories: Classroom, Instructional Materials.

Environmental Adaptations

Products that make the built environment more accessible.
Major Categories: Indoor Environment, Furniture, Outdoor Environment, Vertical Accessibility, Houses, Specialities, Lighting, Signs.

Housekeeping

Products to that assist in cooking, cleaning, and other household activities as well as adapted appliances.
Major Categories: Food Preparation, Housekeeping General, Cleaning, Ironing, Laundry, Shopping.

Orthotics

Braces and other products to support or supplement joints or limbs.
Major categories: Head and Neck, Lower Extremity, Torso, Upper Extremity.

Prosthetics

Products for amputees.
Major categories: Lower Extremity, Upper Extremity.

Recreation

Products to assist people with disabilities with their leisure and athletic activities.
Major Categories: Crafts, Electronics, Gardening, Music, Photography, Sewing, Sports, Toys.

Safety and Security

Products to protect health and home.
Major Categories: Alarm and Security Systems, Child Proof Devices, Electric Cords, Lights, Locks.

Seating

Products that assist people to sit comfortably and safely.
Major Categories: Seating Systems, Cushions, Therapeutic Seats.

Therapeutic Aids

Products that assist in treatment for health problems and therapy and training for certain disabilities.
Major Categories: Ambulation Training, Biofeedback, Evaluation, Exercise, Fine and Gross Motor Skills, Perceptual Motor, Positioning, Pressure/Massage Modality Equipment, Respiratory Aids, Rolls, Sensory Integration, Stimulators, Therapy Furnishings, Thermal/Water Modality Equipment, Traction.

Transportation

Products to enable people with disabilities to drive or ride in cars, vans, trucks and buses.
Major Categories: Mass Transit Vehicles and Facilities, Vehicles, Vehicle Accessories.

Walking

Products to aid people with disabilities who are able to walk or stand with assistance.
Major Categories: Canes, Crutches, Standing, Walkers.

Wheeled Mobility

Products and accessories that enable people with mobility disabilities to move freely indoors and outdoors.
Major Categories: Wheelchairs (Manual, Sport, and Powered), Wheelchair Alternatives (Scooters), Wheelchair Accessories, Carts, Transporters, Stretchers.

Workplace

Products to aid people with disabilities at work.
Major Categories: Agricultural Equipment, Office Equipment, Tools, Vocational Assessment, Vocational Training, Work Stations.

The Products page also has a classified section where users can post either re-sales of assistive technology or want ads for needed assistive technology.  All of the process is screened through AbleData.

The Resources Page

The Resources page includes information such as information centers, conferences and companies that can help users to learn more about assistive technology.   This information can provide teachers with a wealth of resources for various disabilities, services, technology, professional development, and other resources. 

The Library Page

 The library contains three sections:  publications, literature and news.

Publications

 The Publications page includes fact sheets and consumer guides about the various products that they provide information for on their products page.  This page also contains links with recent articles written from the National Institute for Rehabilitation Engineering. 

The Literature Page

The Literature Page includes a search box and list to find recent articles, books, and publications about assistive technology.  I found this information very useful to learn more about the current trends of assistive technology. 

The News you can Use Page

The News You Can Use page is very similar to a blog about assistive technology.  Posts are made every few weeks including links to various resources, surveys, conferences, or other hot topics about disabilities and assistive technology.

My AbleData Account

You can create a free account with AbleData and then be able to save information about devices that you would like to look back at in the future or share with others.

Thanks for stopping by.  I hope you find this post helpful.





Special Toys for Kids with Special Needs

Here are some ideas to keep in mind when looking for toys for kids with special needs.

Look for toys that:

• Talk or produce sounds    Toys that talk or imitate real life noises attract children's attention, help them understand cause and effect, and teach them to use auditory senses effectively as they grow.
• Have bright colors, high contrast and emit light
  Toys with simple contrasting patterns of lines and shapes that are brightly colored or light up during play stimulate children to use their vision to its best potential.
• Feature a variety of interesting surfaces and textures  Toys that have dials, switches, buttons and other surfaces that are fun to touch and operate encourage children to use their fingers and hands to explore. Textures introduce children to the way everyday objects feel. Interesting, flexible or rubbery surfaces make dolls, rattles and balls easy to play with and appealing.
• Stimulate thinking and creativity:    Puzzles, railroads, blocks and other building toys help children discover how parts make up the whole and stimulate their imagination to plan and build. Toy letters and numbers marked in Braille, as well as phonics toys introduce children to the wonders of learning through reading. That sense of wonder is also experienced as they play with craft kits and art supplies, which help enhance creativity.
• Encourage movement and exploration:  Climbing and riding toys, athletic equipment and other action toys engage children in movement and exploration. Physical activity promotes the growth of strong muscles for walking, running and sports; toy rattles, hand puppets and musical toys enhance the development of fine motor and hand skills, and facilitate graceful and easy movement.
• Promote cooperation, sharing and social growth:  Games and role playing activities engage children in play with their friends, family and teachers. Games that encourage cooperation and sharing build the foundation of friendship and relationships with others.
• Develop awareness of people, places and things:  Dolls, stuffed animals, puppets, vehicles and play towns introduce the sights and sounds of daily living, acquaint children with the jobs that people do at home and at work, and stimulate creative role play

Some links to information about toys for children with special needs....

Ropard Toys

Ropard.org is a website for  retinopathy of prematurity and related diseases.  This section is devoted to providing examples of toys which are appropriate for visually impaired children in 4 different categories.  They could be appropriate as well for children with other special needs.

Heads Up
 (learning to look, listen, and feel;  unable to sit)

CREEPER CRAWLER  
(Able to sit but not stand; gets into 4 point; reaches and grasps)

Independent Explorer (Runs, jumps, draws, feeds self)

Playworks

This website has 4 sections--early toys, manipulatives, special needs, and other toys. 

Special Needs Toys are separated into seven sub-categories to facilitate finding toys that address specific special needs and situations. Special Needs Toys enhance child development, allowing children with diverse abilities to experience a variety of sensory feedback and stimulation. Distraction Toys also provide relief from stress and enhance a child's ability to cope. Distraction Distraction Toys enable children to turn their attention away from stressful situations and immerse themselves in play. These toys invite children of all ages to escape and explore, enabling them to cope. Meteor Storm is our most popular distraction toy. To activate a countinuously changing light display, a child must press and hold down the button. Letting go turns off the light. The child must focus on the act of play itself. Now available in two sizes. The larger globe of the original prevents young children from sticking the light in their mouths while the mini, with its breakaway cord, can be worn around the neck for instant gratification. Light Up Light Toys provide visual feedback and stimulation to both low vision and sighted children. Although lighting up is the primary function of these toys, all provide multi- sensory experiences. Meteor Storm, with its press and hold switch, engages the sense of touch and invites children to experiment with on/off and to track the continuously changing color patterns of the spinning globe. This spinning causes the globe to vibrate, stimulating "feel" when the child places his hand on the globe, enabling blind children to enjoy Meteor Storm too. Sound Sound Toys offer auditory feedback, enhance language and motor skills, develop spatial intelligence and understanding of cause and effect. Sound Peg Puzzles are Sound Toys that provide varied visual, tactile, and auditory experiences and enhance motor and language skills. Fitting each puzzle piece in its proper place enhances motor development and rewards success with the appropriate sound. The pieces and their sounds enhance communication skills as the child identifies each piece and mimics the sound. Sharing the experience with an adult or older child provides further opportunity to hone cognitive and language skills, as the two engage in conversation about the puzzle and its components. Sound & Light Sound & Light Toys offer both auditory and visual feedback. Although producing sound and light is the primary function of these toys, each requires the child to perform a task to elicit these responses, re-enforcing understanding of cause and effect and refining motor skills. Both Baby Buzz'r and the newer Busy Bee Baby Buzz'r are multi-sensory toys that not only light-up and sound off but also vibrate and provide phthalate-free teethable textured surfaces. Blinking lights, music, and vibration activate individually by easy on/easy off push buttons, allowing the child to experiment and figure out what happens when he presses the buttons. Eventually he will discover that he can control the functions, choosing a favorite, then adding another and another as he explores possibilities. The visual, auditory, and vibratory responses are gentle, and the vibrations cycle on and off to keep the child engaged. Texture Texture ToysTexture Toys provide oppportunities to use touch to explore similarities and differences and to learn words to describe these characterisitics. Developing tactile discrimination skills enriches sighted children and lays the foundation for blind children to learn braille. Tangles features  a series of 90 degree curves interconnected to pivot 180 degrees at each joint. Playworks offers a variety of Tangles with texture, from the hard plastic Original with Texture to the Tangle Therapy with its soft, pliable coating and distinctive raised nodes. Their low impact motion relieves stress, strengthens finger muscles, and restores motion to joints. Teachers who use Tangles as a reward for children with autism report improved behavior: an increased calm and ability to cope with stressors that usually send them "over the edge" as well as increases in skill acquisition. Tangles invite manipulation and reward play with improved concentration and spatial relations and problem solving skills. Communications Children learn through play. Communications Toys enable children to develop cognitive and language skills, and foster creativity, planning and problem-solving. Quality play builds confidence and re-enforces a child's desire to explore and learn. Being able to communicate well enhances the play experience. The better a child is able to express his thoughts and feelings, the more likely he is to get along well with others. Acquiring social skills and becoming effective communicators are essential components of successful human development. Emotional intelligence leads to more effective communications. The game Eggspressions helps children identify their feelings and develop problem solving skills while having fun. By sharing their feelings and working together, children figure out a happy solution to a challenge. Oral motor skills are essential for eating and speech. Tooting, humming, whistling, and blowing toys exercise facial and oral muscles and encourage deep breathing and controlled blowing. Facial and oral massagers provide oral stimulation. Their low-intensity vibration calms and organizes sensory input. Jigglers arecontinuously "on" chewable oral facial massagers. They turn on and off with a twist and come in two  styles: a purple elephant and a green alligator. Multi-Purpose The versatility of Multi-Purpose Toys enhances motor development skills, language development skills and cognitive development.  Bilibo is one such toy. Its unique shape and bright colors arouse curiosity and encourage experimentation. Children sit in and on, rock and spin, stand on top of, and hop and jump from one to another. One Bilibo can cradle a doll; a row of them can become a train or anything else a creative mind can imagine. Special needs preschoolers can experiment with gravity in a safe way.

Here's another good resource when looking for toys for children with special needs.

Toys R Us Guide for Differently Abled Kids

Toys"R"Us, Inc.  publishes the annual Toys"R"Us Toy Guide for Differently-Abled Kids, an easy-to-use resource featuring specially selected toys that encourage play for children with physical, cognitive or developmental disabilities.


 And finally, I had to include the elephant just for fun.
Elefun  The Butterfly Catchin' Game. Play the butterfly catching game with an elephant full of fun! The motorized elephant blows colorful butterflies into the air. Practice catching skills with the handy butterfly net,

Happy New Year and thank you for stopping by.

Music for Students with Special Needs

Why Music?

• Research supports connections between speech and singing, rhythm and motor behavior, memory for song, and memory for academic material.  
• We also know that music enhances mood, attention, and behavior to optimize students' ability to learn and interact.
• Gross motor skills such as mobility, agility, and coordination can be improved with rhythmic movement.
• Rhythmic movement can also help with breathing patterns and muscular relaxation.
• Music can be a vehicle for inclusion.
• Music can provide distraction from pain, discomfort, and anxiety.
• Music is processed in a different part of the brain than speech and language.  So, a child may be able to learn something presented with music that he or she might not otherwise learn.

Here are a few links to resources related to music, students with special needs and technology

Full Pitcher

Very nice British website which provides a unique range of free online music resources.  They also have a blog which you might like to follow.   Full Pitcher Blog

Music for Everyone

Inclusion is a group of 7 people from Campbell River, British Columbia who play music to promote awareness that people are more alike than different.  Four of the members have developmental disabilities.  Their motto is "We all have gifts".  They're terrific!

National Arts and Disability Center

The center's mission is to promote the full inclusion of audiences and artists with disabilities into all facets of the arts community. The NADC is a leading consultant in the arts and disability community, and the only center of its kind. Their information is aimed at artists with disabilities, arts organizations, museums, arts administrators, disability organizations and agencies, performing arts organizations, art centers, universities, arts educators, and students. The NADC is a project of the University of California, at Los Angeles, Tarjan Center.

Traquitanas Musicais This is a very interesting website.  Traquitanas Musicais are electronic musical instruments designed for people with and without disabilities. The idea is to allow anyone, including the disabled, to play, discover sounds and have fun. Electronic instruments allow for more flexibility in terms of physical properties, like shape and size, than acoustic instruments do. This opens the possibility of creating instruments based solely on human body characteristics, leaving designers with no reasons not to include persons with disabilities. Traquitanas Musicais is a project by multimedia artists Eiko DoEspiritosanto and Rivaldo DoEspiritosanto. Their sculpture-like instruments are in fact MIDI controllers connected to a microprocessor and a synthesizer. Since it is impossible to create one single instrument that works well for everyone, the artists experiment with different designs, building diverse instruments to meet diverse needs.   Below is a diagram of an accessible musical instrument. 

Classics for Kids

This websites features a different classical composer every month.  It also has a section that allows students to make their own radio show.

Sing Up

Sing Up is an awesome website.  Its mission is to help kids find their voice.  Features include a Song Bank, Teaching section with tutorials and lesson plans, and Voice Box which provides warm-up activities to help kids find their "groove".

Music is a moral law. It gives soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination, a charm to sadness, gaiety and life to everything.  It is the essence of order and lends to all that is good and just and beautiful. -- Plato

Thank you for stopping by!

14 Excellent Websites

14 Interesting Websites for your Holiday Surfing Pleasure!

These websites are being passed on to you with the holidays in mind.  Perhaps you'll have a little time to do some websurfing.  So, here are a variety of  websites that I hope will be interesting, amusing, or  mind-expanding for you. They are not specifically related to special education assistive technology.  However, I hope that you will make some serendipitous discoveries.

 Exploratorium

This website offers ways to explore science, art, and human perception through online interactives, web features, and programs that  feed your curiosity.

Mapjack

Mapjack is similar to Google Street view except that the images are better.  You may want to check it out and see what you think.   Mapjack is on Time's list of top 50 websites for 2008.

Visuwords

. 

Visuwords is a thesaurus reimagined as a toy. It asks you to think of a word and then turns that word into a universe of bouncing, rotating, vibrating meaning by pulling related words into orbit around it. The words careen off one another like balls on a billiard table until they settle down, at which point you can set them in motion again — or choose a new word. It's highly addictive, especially for English majors.

Visuwords was one of the top 50 website on Time magazines 2009 list

Wolfram Alpha

Wolfram is a computational knowledge engine.  It is not a search engine.  Enter your question or calculation, and Wolfram|Alpha uses its computational power and storehouse of knowledge to
compute the answer.

Photosynth

Photosynth  capitalizes on the shift from film to digital with a new way to look at pictures. Instead of arranging photos in an album, the site finds relationships among pictures and digitally composites them to create an immersive 3-D photo environment called a "synth."  Photosynth takes your photos, mashes them together and recreates a 3D scene out of them that you can view and move around in. It's different from static photos and video in that it allows you to explore details of places, objects, and events. You can stop it, move around and zoom in to check out the smallest details.  You can also look at a photo gallery and immediately see the spatial relation between the photos. Photosynth was one of the top 50 website on Time magazine's 2009 list.

Fonolo

"Press one for English."  Fonolo is a website that offers a unique service. It makes the call to that large, impersonal corporation, presses the right buttons and stays on hold for you until a human comes on the line. Then your phone rings and you can talk to a live person about your account. Fonolo also gives you the option to record your conversation as an MP3, just in case your chat with customer support doesn't go that well. Fonolo shows you a visual map of the phone trees of various big companies and allows you to pick your point of entry. A computer does the rest. They offer a free trial.  Fonolo is on Time's list of top 50 websites for 2009.

Bing 

Bing is Microsoft's search engine.  It has a very good video search engine.  Check it out!

Etsy

 

According to Time Magazine's description, "Etsy is the long-haired, Birkenstocked love child of Amazon and eBay. It's a crafts-only marketplace oozing with personality — imagine if Martha Stewart were reincarnated as Ani DiFranco and you get the gist. It's the go-to site for handmade fashion, furniture, toys and housewares."  The site  feels intimate because Etsy sells labors of love from actual people.  Etsy is on Time's list of top 50 websites for 2009.

Cylinders Preservation and Digitization Project

From the first recordings made on tinfoil in 1877 to the last produced on celluloid in 1929, cylinders spanned a half-century of technological development in sound recording. As documents of American cultural history and musical style, cylinders serve as an audible witness to the sounds and songs through which typical audiences first encountered the recorded human voice. Now they are available in digital format.

New York Public Library Digital gallery

NYPL Digital Gallery provides free and open access to over 700,000 images digitized from the The New York Public Library's vast collections, including illuminated manuscripts, historical maps, vintage posters, rare prints, photographs, and more.  Awesome!

Babble

This online magazine is for today's cool parents. They can find out how to pick a Facebook- and Google-friendly baby name, get tips on organizing for the school year and learn how to dress their little girls like the daughters on The Real Housewives of New Jersey. A little scary isn't it?  This website is on Time's list of best websites for 2010.

MOOM

The museum of online museums.  This is a fascinating website featuring exhibits from many different museums.

Looxcie Wearable Camcorder

 For just $199 you can have a wearable camera .  Looxcie is always on, continuously videoing – there's no record button. When you experience something you want to share, just click the Instant Clip button to save a clip of the last thirty seconds.

Livemocha.com 

Live Mocha offers basic instructional tutorials and exercises in some 30 different languages, but the service's real value is in its community. Livemocha has assembled more than 6 million members, each listing fluency and linguistic skills. When submitting an exercise, you have the option to get someone in the community to grade your effort, correcting your pitfalls and helping you hone your skills through the careful lens of a native speaker. It's a social approach to learning a language, and one that's cheaper than pricey software like Rosetta Stone — basic courses are free, and utilizing the community costs a small monthly fee.

And, finally here's an interesting New York Times article about our young people who are wired for distractions.

New York Times Article About Technology

Also, one last note... I heard that these Steve Jobs (CEO of Apple) dolls are hard to find if not completely sold out.  And I so wanted one!  So, if you want one for Christmas, you should order soon!  They're about $80.00.

Happy Holidays and Thank you for visiting!

Colors and Special Needs

The use of color and other text options can help students with special needs to have  more successful and positive reading and writing experiences.  Many of these suggestions should be guided by student preference.  You are encouraged to try different color combinations, fonts, and text sizes with students.  Students may be able to find some choices that help them to read in a way that is more efficient and less tiring.

This post is typed in Arial font because it is one of the fonts that is easier to read.  Compare it to Times New Roman.  It's not bad, but the Arial seems easier to read.  Do you agree?

These suggestions are from the Don Johnston website.

Don Johnston Research Article on Using Colors

General Strategies for Choosing Color and Other Text Options

Here are some guidelines for choosing screen colors. 

These strategies could be discussed with an individual student or with a class.

1. Can you easily see black print when the page is white?   YES    NO

2. Is it comfortable to read on a white screen or white page?   YES    NO

Change Screen Color

If you answer No to either question, you need to change the color of the screen and/or print.  First, try different colored backgrounds.  Look at the box and ask yourself the following questions each time you change the color of the background until you find the color that is the best.  Try all the different colors with black print.  Do not forget to also try black background with white letters.

• Is this color comfortable to look at?  How do my head and eyes feel?
• Is the print easy to see?  Does it stand out from the background?
• Is the print clear and stable?

Change Text Color

Next pick the text color.  Some people see better and more comfortably with text that is low contrast or a similar color family to the background, others prefer high contrast resulting from a totally different color text, others prefer white text, and some prefer black text.  Try colors, black and white print until you find the combination that:

• Is  comfortable to look at
• The print is clear, sharp, and stable
• Text is easy to see because it stands out from the background

Change Text Size

Some people find it easier to see when the text is larger.  Change the size of the font until the text is easy to see.

Change Font Style

Most people find that reading simple, unstylized block text is easier than cursive or handwriting-style text.  Do you know what text style is best for you?  This font is Arial.

Other Helpful Hints

• Bold Print.  See if making the print bold makes it easier to see.
• Extra Spacing.  Do you feel like the lines of print are crowded together?  Increase the size of the spacing between lines of print and even add extra space after each paragraph
• Paragraph Alignment. Standard left alignment is easiest to read.  Avoid using justified paragraphs or forced justified alignment (when both left and right edges are aligned because it changes the spacing between the words, which may make it harder to read.
• Room Lighting.  Do you like a lot of light, dim lighting, indirect lighting, incandescent lighting?  You may want to change the room lighting to make it more comfortable for you when using the computer.  You may want more lighting, less lighting, or a different type of lighting to make it comfortable and the screen easier to see.  If you cannot change the lighting but are bothered by bright lighting you may find that wearing a visor or cap helps.
• Adjust the Brightness Level of the Screen.  Did you need the screen to be brighter or dimmer?
• Printing Material from the Computer.  Use paper color that is the same color as your favorite screen color.  Some people find that it is easier to read the material when it is printed rather than on the screen.
• Copying.  Place material to be copied on a book stand or page-up (remember those?)

The following information comes from the Irlen Institute.  It is discussed on the Don Johnston website.

I have done some coloring to try and help illustrate the points that are being made about color.  You may want to do your own experimenting.  These ideas are not just for students with visual impairments. 

PROBLEM:  A lack of sustained attention (ADD).

Suggestion:  Most vivid complementary colors to aid stimulation.
Recommended:  Magenta and Green.  Red and Yellow.

PROBLEM:  A lack of sustained attention (ADD).

Suggestion:  Select secondary colors that contain yellow, for more intensity.

Recommended:  Goldenrod or yellow-green background.

PROBLEM: Confuse similar words.

Suggestion:  Try various colors.

Recommended: Rose (light red) or red background.

PROBLEM:  Uneven arousal state (tend to "drift").

Stimulate with bright colors to focus attention.

Recommended: Bright yellow background.

Behavioral and Developmental Problems

PROBLEM:  Autism/PPD

Suggestion:  Try various colors

Recommended: Light blue or green background.

PROBLEM:  Behavioral problems

Suggestion:  Try various colors.

Recommended: Dark colored backgrounds.

PROBLEM:  Developmental delays

Suggestion:  Most vivid complementary colors to aide stimulation.

Recommended: Magenta and Green.  Red and Yellow.

Learning Disabled

PROBLEM:  Dyslexia, (perceive letter omissions, reversals, jumping letters.

Suggestion: Dark colors

Recommended:  Black text on dark blue background.

PROBLEM:  Learning Disability
Suggestion:  Select preferred colors.
Often selected: Blues and Greens

PROBLEM:  Learning Disability with Attention Deficit

Suggestion:  Colored light stimulation

Recommended: Green and Red

Color Perception

PROBLEM:  Some retina-based visual impairments.
Suggestion:  Sharp contrast with vibrant colors.Choice depends on individual color perception and type of retinal damage.
Recommended:  Yellow text on red background with bright blue cursor. Or, yellow text on blue background with red cursor. 

Light Sensitivity/Low Vision

PROBLEM:  Inadequate background accommodation.  (White background overpowers text and letters lose distinctive shapes.)

Suggestion:  Inverted text (light text on dark background) or monochromatic color scheme

Recommended:  Pale yellow text on dark blue background.  Light blue text on dark blue background.  Light grey text on dark grey background..

PROBLEM:  Low Vision.

Suggestion:  High contrast, with restful background color.  Bright cursor for locating ease.

Recommended:  Black text on light blue background with red cursor.  Navy text on peach or soft yellow background with cobalt cursor.

PROBLEM:  Low vision, bothered by glare or brightness 

Suggestion:  Inverted text (light text on dark background), with bright cursor for locating ease. 

Recommended:  Soft yellow text on black or navy background with bright blue cursor.  Peach text on dark blue-green background with bright yellow cursor.

PROBLEM:  Low vision, bothered by glare or brightness, but prefer dark text on light background

Suggestion:  Tone down background brightness with pale colors.

Recommended:  Black or navy text on peach, light blue, or soft yellow background, with red cursor.

PROBLEM: Sensory defensive (sensitive to brightness, glare, high contrast, or fluorescent lighting). 

Suggestion:   Low contrast, soft colors, monochromatic scheme.

Recommended:  Medium blue text on navy or dark blue background with blue-green cursor.

Blue-green text on dark blue-grey background with grey cursor. Light or medium grey text on dark grey background with dark blue-grey cursor.

Thank you for stopping by!