A collection of play elements for children with sensory impairments.
Project Type: Academic
Team: Morgan Bullis, McKenzie McHugh, Christian Ferraro
Client: Playworld
THE PROBLEM
Children with sensory disabilities are underserved in the playground market. Our client, Playworld, wants to capitalize on this opportunity by increasing their portfolio of inclusive play elements that consider the needs of this demographic.
Second Key Image (Digital Drawing by Morgan)
RESEARCH
The client and our professor assigned our team to design specifically for children with impairments to the sense of touch, focusing our approach and research. We found that disabilities ranged greatly, including sensory processing disorder, hypersensitivity, hyposensitivity, and the complete loss of touch.
Highlights from Playworld's design brief
User Persona
Competitive Analysis
I conducted a competitive analysis of Landscape Structures while my team members focused on Gametime and Burke. While we found equipment that was inclusive and focused on sensory play, there was nothing designed specifically for disabilities related to touch.
Aesthetic Board (Made by McKenzie)
THE SOLUTION
The most important insight from our research was the lack of play elements on the market that would offer a positive experience for children who are hypersensitive to touch and children who are hyposensitive to touch. Identifying this opportunity helped us refine our target user and drove our decision to create play elements with varying levels of interaction to accommodate a diverse range of tactile sensitivities. To tie the collection together we made all three pieces ocean themed.
Original Key Image (Drawing by Morgan)
SEA ANEMONE
The Sea Anemone is a collection of flexible plastic tubes that can be pushed, pulled, and moved through to provide tactile sensation. It is large enough to accommodate many children and promotes imaginative play. Kids can use it as a maze, to play tag or hide & seek, or simply explore on their own.
Scaled Model (Made by Morgan)
Base: Cardboard covered with cellophane paper
Tubes: Pipe cleaners attached with twine
PROCESS:
My original sketch was inspired by the film Finding Nemo and the interaction between clownfish and sea anemones. To make the idea feasible, we considered two ways to create the base structure. Ultimately, we decided to go with option B to allow the tubes more flexibility.
Morgan's Original Sketch
Explorations of the Structure (Morgan's Sketch)
CORAL ARCHES
A pathway of coral-inspired structures that challenge children to think creatively as they navigate each arch. Children can climb and balance on the structure if they want tactile sensation, or determine how to move their bodies through the structure if they don't.
Scaled Model (Made by Morgan & Christian)
Wood dowels covered with Play-Doh
PROCESS:
We combined McKenzie’s Map Maze sketch with Morgan's Movement Forrest sketch to include multiple play styles in one piece of equipment. Next, we simplified the structure into two units that can be installed with either the top or bottom side as the base, creating four different shapes.
McKenzie's Sketch "Map Maze"
Morgan's Sketch "Movement Forrest"
Morgan's Sketch
Morgan's Sketch
SEASHELL STEPPING STONES
Inspired by the classic children’s game “The Floor is Lava”, children can engage in imaginative play by jumping from shell to shell while avoiding the ocean floor. It encourages kids to practice balancing and offers levels of challenge as the ropes can be used for support.
Scaled Model (Made by McKenzie)
Base: Printed image of water glued on styrofoam
Seashells: Cardboard, printed images
Rope/Railings: Wood, paper, clay, pipe cleaners
PROCESS:
We developed Christian's original sketch into the Swamp. When it was decided to make the collection ocean-themed, we explored various seashell shapes and sizes to serve as the platforms.
Christian's Original Sketch
Christian's Sketch
