Community engaged learning has demonstrated educational benefits and is an especially promising method to engage a diverse group of students in engineering. In this work, we present toy adaptation for children with disabilities as a novel community engaged learning tool. According to students surveyed, this process is enjoyable, demonstrates the…

Engaging, focusing, and persisting in the completion of tasks are among the skills needed for school success. Tracking whether a child is learning cognitive problem-solving skills is essential in knowing if they are acquiring skills important for development and school readiness; and if not, how they are responding to early intervention. Use of…

Blocks and block play are ubiquitous to early childhood settings and as such provide a normative context for social interactions between children with and without disabilities. However, children with disabilities tend to engage in more repetitive and less complex play than their peers, which might limit social interactions and opportunities to…

Background: There is limited research examining the efficacy of early physical therapy on infants with neuromotor dysfunction. In addition, most early motor interventions have not been directly linked to learning, despite the clear association between motor activity and cognition during infancy. Objective: The aim of this project is to evaluate…

The article presents a research developed collaterally within the framework of the European research project "LUDI. Play for Children with Disabilities" (http://ludinetwork.eu/, 2014-2018). One goal of the project is to provide guidelines on play for children with disabilities. To reach this goal, first of all the needs of users have…

Technology, engineering, and design (TED) education is replete with hands-on projects and activities to engage students in project- and problem-based learning. TED design briefs provide a realistic context for problems so that students are immersed in as realistic a problem scenario as possible. This article provides a model of best practice for…

Findings from a survey of parents' ratings of seven different human-like qualities of four socially interactive robots are reported. The four robots were Popchilla, Keepon, Kaspar, and CosmoBot. The participants were 96 parents and other primary caregivers of young children with disabilities 1 to 12 years of age. Results showed that Popchilla, a…

Environment is an essential area of attention for practitioners who support young children with disabilities and their families. Decisions about the environment impact the quality of care and education for young children with disabilities showing measurable influence on expected outcomes. Environment impacts true access, quality participation, and…

An ability switch, in simple terms, is an alternative to a button that requires fine dexterity to push. Many toys and appliances operate because of fine motor stimulation, prohibiting many people with fine motor challenges from finding independence with daily tasks. Ability switches offer the option to make things work with a simple gesture that…

Identifying an intervention that is effective for multiple populations can be a challenge. Given the potential range of students in an inclusive setting, the need to identify common strategies that promote skill development for multiple populations is essential. Professionals need to identify those strategies that promote skill development that…

Findings from two studies of 11 young children with autism, Down syndrome, or attention deficit disorders investigating the effects of Popchilla, a socially interactive robot, on the children's affective behavior are reported. The children were observed under two conditions, child-toy interactions and child-robot interactions, and ratings of child…

The effects of a socially interactive robot on the vocalization production of five children with disabilities (4 with autism, 1 with a sensory processing disorder) were the focus of the intervention study described in this research report. The interventions with each child were conducted over 4 or 5 days in the children's homes and involved…

Findings from two studies investigating the effects of a socially interactive robot on the vocalization production of young children with disabilities are reported. The two studies included seven children with autism, two children with Down syndrome, and two children with attention deficit disorders. The Language ENvironment Analysis (LENA)…

Kids aged five and under learn best through play. Instead of buying just any toy, look for toys or activities with things to teach: like the alphabet or names of different animals, and more. Children will play with their new toy and not even realize they are learning while they play. This article focuses on gift ideas for the holiday season, with…

A number of different types of socially interactive robots are being used as part of interventions with young children with disabilities to promote their joint attention and language skills. Parents' judgments of two dimensions (acceptance and importance) of the social validity of four different social robots were the focus of the study described…