Share the post "A new high-tech toy which helps children with developmental disorders to socialize"
About the one percent of the world population has autism spectrum disorder. Life is very hard for children with autism and according to the Autism Society in the United States, the U.S. cost of autism over the lifespan is about $2.4 million for a person with an intellectual disability, or $1.4 million for a person without intellectual disability. It costs more than $8,600 extra per year to educate a student with autism.
Parents of the autistic children have problem to find proper education for them and it is very costly and incapable in most of the world. To contribute a solution to this huge problem, a new startup in Kansas City, United States developed a new smart toy called as Leka for the autistic children to socialize.
Leka is a lot more than a cute for a smart toy. It is interactive and has multi-sensory device. It is designed as a buddy specially made for autistic children. This toy encourages children to create autonomy via playing with it.
It looks like a ball and it plays music and sound. It may speak, light up and vibrate to engage children in multi-sensory activities. This toy is customizable so they can adjust it according to child`s comfort and needs.
I believe that Children with children with developmental disorders needs those kind educational mediums for their education and it is a good tool for a start.
References:
- https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/leka-an-exceptional-toy-for-exceptional-children-autism–2#/
- http://www.autism-society.org/what-is/facts-and-statistics/
- http://mashable.com/2016/12/18/social-good-innovations-2016/#5fy4KuQXCmqU
I think that an interactive toy that you can buy at an affordable price (by supporting the Indiegogo campaign, backers can pre-order Leka for $490, with a $100 discount for a limited number of Indiegogo customers) can be a good proposal for autistic children. As we know this disease makes relations very difficult and so it can be a good solution for socialize. Parents and friends can use it as an intermediary to teach through play while also tracking progresses through the correlated app.
Many autistic people are drawn to technology, particularly the predictability it provides, which means it can be a very useful means of engaging children, and adults too.
I really hope it can reducing the learning inequalities that many children with different developmental disorders currently have, helping also parents dealing with this problem, complementing existing therapies.
http://www.thetoyinsider.com/leka-indiegogo-announcement/
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-3383778/Meet-Leka-social-robot-designed-help-children-autism-learn-new-skills-using-lights-vibrations-sounds.html
I really love the idea ! However, I am thinking about the cost of this toy. Because as you explained in your article the education of an autistic child costs a lot to families, so I am wondering : what is the price of such a toy and especially will all families be able to afford to invest in a toy like this?
I really like the idea of this toy, it is really complete and according to feedbacks from parents who had the chance to try it, it has a really good impact on the children.
But as Justine said, the question remains the price, they try to propose it at an affordable price but I think that for some family it’s still expensive because i have seen on internet that some parents are doing crowdfunding to buy the toy but also when you compare it to a computer or a phone the price is similar so it’s fair