ePlayground
The All Abilities ePlayground is an initiative of the Gold Coast City Council in Queensland, Australia, supported by the Department of Communities (Disability Services) and created by Sonokids Australia, Queensland, Australia.
The ePlayground caters for children with and without a disability and offers them a safe, creative and imaginative online play environment.
This free resource is available at www.allabilitiesplayground.net.au
It’s purpose is to reflect the visions, the concept and the natural surroundings of 17 outdoor all abilities playgrounds funded by the Queensland Government across the state, including 16 created as part of the Queensland All Abilities Playground Project - enabling participation in play.
Goals
- reflect an all-inclusive and safe play environment
- offer fun, innovative and accessible ways of interactive online play
- stimulate and support imagination, skills development and cognitive learning
- allow a child with a disability to play as independently as possible
- create awareness and acceptance of alternative ways to play
- support integration and mutual understanding by play and interaction.
Accessible Design
Sonokids applied ‘Ludic Design for All’ to create the inclusive ePlayground and make it as accessible and attractive as possble for children of all abilities.
The All Abilities ePlayground offers different layers and levels of activities and games, with adjustable settings and alternative navigation to suit individual needs and abilities.
Like an outdoor playground, there is no set path, encouraging children to explore the virtual play environment independently and to discover new skills along the way.
In addition to more traditional devices like keyboards, mouses and joysticks, the ePlayground is tailored for use with touch screens and low-tech assistive technologies like single switch and Puff2play - a novel navigation developed by Sonokids, via 'puffs' of breath into a microphone. Children who are blind or have low vision can navigate by way of a clear set of keys of the computer keyboard, supported by the talking, virtual ‘game mate’ BuddyFly.
New ePlaygrounds
Sonokids invites requests for localisation and customisation of the ePlayground's design concept to suit other countries, languages, cultures and usergroups.
Please contact play@sonokids.com.