A toy for every tot
In partnership with the nonprofit RePlay for Kids, the program teaches engineering students how to adapt toys to enable children with special needs to play independently. The idea grew from a single student’s proposition to an effort coordinated by Elizabeth Riter, Green Engineering Scholars program manager, and Rachel Kajfez, assistant professor of practice in the Department of Engineering Education.
The first workshop occurred in 2013 as a Green Engineering Scholars’ community service activity, but has since grown to include six classes for a total of 230 participating first-year engineering students. Sixty upperclass student mentors and teaching assistants also participate.
The events teach students how to take apart a toy to access the circuity, determine a way to add a parallel circuit and attach a switch connection so that children can activate the toy in whatever way they are able to based on their diagnosis.
“Our first workshop was difficult in many ways,” said Riter. “We had maybe half of the toys adapted and working, but since then we have had a lot of successful workshops, at least one every semester. Now with the workshops as part of a class, we have been able to provide more structure to the program through developed curriculum and training materials.”
“After the first workshop, I was hooked,” said Meg West, a third-year civil engineering major and program intern. “I went to every workshop held for the next three semesters. I loved being able to apply the engineering skills I learned in the classroom to directly make a positive impact in others' lives. Once the Toy Adaptation Program intern position became available, I immediately applied.”
To impact as many kids as possible, the adapted toys are donated to the Toy and Technology Library at Ohio State’s Nisonger Center and Katelyn’s Krusade, a nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting children with special developmental and medical needs. Thanks to the grant funding, many adapted toys are also donated directly to local families in need.
“It is more meaningful and impactful to give the toys directly to families,” said Riter. “Some people with children who need these toys can’t access them in the libraries due to distance or other factors. Donating directly to families is more convenient and less of a burden financially for them.”
Program organizers are also developing new community workshops that will teach the adaption process to families and community members.
“Having a disability myself, I know how much it means to have things that bring you joy in the midst of doctor visits and hospital stays,” West explained. “The toys we adapt bring joy to these children and families that they might not have been able to afford otherwise. Once these workshops are underway, families will have the means to adapt their own toys and create these small joys themselves.”
In the spring, the team also plans to make kits containing all the necessary tools and materials needed to adapt a toy. The program will provide families with the kits and resources such as videos and training guides to assist them while adapting toys at home.
“One of the things these disabilities initially rob you of are daydreams of playing and interacting with your child in ways taken for granted before diagnosis,” said Tara Silva, whose family received an adapted toy for her son, Jackson. “We are extremely excited about the community workshops and the opportunity to receive a take-home kit!”
Program organizers continue to seek more funding to support additional initiatives such as beginning research into developing or modifying current switches or adapting other objects such as lights or fans. They also want to expand the program geographically beyond Ohio and have considered bringing the project to high schools to introduce and hopefully attract younger students to the field of engineering.
With the goal of helping as many families as possible, organizers hope that playtime may soon have new meaning for many families.
“The Toy Adaption Program has truly been a light in the dark for my family,” said Silva. “Dealing with the reality of a Spinal Muscular Atrophy Type 1 diagnosis is devastating. Finding the Toy Adaptation Program, the adapted toy library, Elizabeth Riter and Ohio State student engineers has given my family hope, excitement and has given back what was taken from us at diagnosis.”
by Jenn Shafer
