Phuong's team of Makers designs a communication application that can support him (and other children with autism) choosing visuals that deliver sound matching well with what he wants to express in details and emotions, so that he will not only communicate with his mother but also others. in addition, he and his family can build up their own favorite dictionary everyday.
They want to develop a mobile application or a device that can help Phuong express what he wants, how he feels and help him to step by step interact and blend better into normal life like normal children as well as for his mother to understand him better
Phuong is nearly 16 years old and lives with severe autism. Talking to Phuong’s parents, it’s impossible to grasp the full extent of challenges they face. The hings he knows about this beautiful life are merely basic needs like eating, drinking and daily hygienes. At the core, one of his greatest challenge is his inability to communicate his feelings, wants and needs to the people around him. To communicate with Phuong, his parents taught him to make letters, sentences and special signs by tearing papers. Phuong can also make stuttering sounds of “eat” or “water”, and can sometimes count from 1 to 10. When asked about his ability to express higher needs such as listening to music, watching movies, swimming or playing outside, his mother answered with disappointment that if Phuong himself wants to experience the outside world, he cannot express his thoughts to other people. Phuong is completely dependent. His parents are never free from worries. Everything he does must be supervised and aided. Phuong’s family doesn’t have access to communication devices that are commonplace in the developed world. “Feeling sad, he often cries to himself. Sometimes, he screamed his heart out in vain. If only there was a device that can help him communicate 50% better, our life would be so much happier,” shared his mother.
An open-source assistive technology project shared free by TOM: Tikkun Olam Makers.
Browse all TOM projects · Search projects · TOM communities · Makeathons and events