ADDITIONAL COMMUNITY WINNERS

COMMUNICATING THROUGH MUSIC By candemosse

The objective is to facilitate positive change in the behavior of children with autism in a "safe" environment where no one will be embarrassed.

To develop pattern thinking. The children use a game board. This board has a 5x5 grid with the x-axis representing the major pentatonic scale . Each cell has a specific note assigned as well as a tone. (This data is programmed in software on a computer connected to the board by USB)

As the user places a cube in different positions along the x-axis the notes climb the pentatonic scale. If they combine the movement with the y-axis they are able to vary the pitch of the note.

For example, the first row of the cells represent the C Major Pentatonic Scale (C - D - E - G - A). As a user moves along the y-axis, the notes jump to a higher octave, and so on.

Children can play with this product in their homes, in the classroom or in a music therapy session. The games can be designed according to each child's specific needs. They can choose between the sound of 5 or more instruments previously recorded in the computer (guitar, piano, flute, drums, bass, etc).

The aim of this is to have more options available in the case that the child doesn't feel comfortable with a sound in particular. (It is known that some kids with ASD or Autism react in different ways to different sounds or instruments).

Achievements

Enrich the lives of children by providing a gentler environment that makes creative-self expression possible and where children can: + SING: This can help make their language more fluid, + TOUCH: Tangible interaction, providing a great training to develop social interaction skills. + DANCE: Learn to register themselves caught up in the rhythm. + HAVE FUN! + SHARE! with their families, friends or close ones. + LEARN and improve non musical tasks through musical games + EXPLORE sounds, melodies, and learn to recognize different instruments. + APPROACH TO MUSIC The idea of this game is to awake curiosity in the children about learning music. They can then learn to play an actual instrument and already have a basic idea of it.

Technology Requirements

Arduino platform embedded in a board. It includes sensors, speakers and it's connected via USB to a Desktop PC/Laptop. It detects when cubes are placed in each cell.

Some game ideas:

1) Improving visual contact - Players: a kid and an adult. The adult plays a note with an instrument or his/her own voice. This helps stimulate the kid to paying attention to the source of that music, as he/she has to look to the therapist to find cues on what he/she has to do. The kid is encouraged to copy the same note.

2) Non musical tasks/understanding tasks - Players: a kid and an adult. The kid is encouraged to play different notes or form different melodies in the board. The adult responds to the different melodies by doing different actions (and explaining outloud what these actions are, example: brush teeth, sleep, sit, etc.) Then they exchange roles, and the teachers plays the melodies and encourages the kid to do the different actions.

3) Improvisation and music learning. Can help the kid find motivation in a creative activity that can lead in learning instruments later on, and finding a relaxing activity to escape from an overstimulating sorrounding.

4) Memotex The child listens to 5 different notes, and has to reproduce them to complete the given song.This will give the kids a chance to learn a complex melody in parts, they can join together later. Also, they learn to group different fragments that belong to a unique song played in that instrument he has first chosen.

5) Acoustic Stimulation - dance Here they would listen to a random melody and would have to copy the movements their partners perform as a mirror. Use of sound to elicit a response in the nervous system. Eye contact , recognition of the other and the relationship with their own body is involved in this activity.

Download Version

The objective of this version of the dashboard is to make it accessible to as many people as possible. Users are provided with a .pdf document with a printable dashboard and cubes templates.

The parents/caregivers/friends/family members can assemble the pieces with the child and, choose between a coloured or uncoloured version to paint together.

The only requirement to play with this version of the game is access with a computer with a camera. The camera should be pointing the dashboard. Each time the child positions the cube in a given square it would reproduce a note. (notes may vary as explained above)

The Autism Connects technology and design competition challenged students to help individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) to better connect with the world around them and allow individuals who do not have ASD to better understand and connect with those who do by combining technological and creative solutions. This international student competition brought together a distinguished jury panel across disciplines including Yves Behar (fuseproject), Lisa Strausfeld (Pentagram), Richard Seymour (Seymourpowell) and our own Allan Chochinov (Core77). The Jury grand prize winner will be awarded $5000 and the top three designs will receive a $1,000 stipend and registration fees to attend the 2011 International Meeting for Autism Research, to be held May 12 to 14, 2011 in San Diego, CA, where they will be invited to present their design concept. We will be profiling all of the winners in anticipation of next week's conference.

See the full list of winners here.