Adapting Audio/Video Games for Handicapped Learners: Part 1

.If you are a parent, teacher, or caregiver of a severely handicapped child, you know how the days can drag when there is nothing new to do. Audiolvideo toys and games offer sustaining diversions that are educational as well as just plain fun. Because of the number of items and rate at which the selection is expanding, only a small sample of audiolvisual toys and games could be included in this article. However, many of the adaptive ideas can be used with toys or games that are similar to the ones described. Since there is so much variation in the skills and abilities of severely handicapped children, it will take some experimenting with individual children to see what kind of adaptations are most appropriate. All children, handicapped or not, have their own ideas about what is "fun." If a child feels that a particular game or toy is fun, you will probably have a willing helper in devising an adaptation. Even children who have no language can communicate what gives them pleasure. What better way to open new doors to learning than to offer an experience that is fun? There are a few specific problems to keep in mind when selecting audiolvideo games for children with the following handicaps: