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Sign up for free to get videos and manuals on how to make regular toys switch accessible

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Adapted Toys | SWITCHED adapted toys | United States

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SWITCHED Adapted Toys offer free Instruction videos and tutorials on how to adapt toys for children with special needs. Join a local chapter. "Making Play Possible"

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This is a step by step video of how to make an "off the shelf" nerf gun switch accessible.

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SWITCHED Adapted Toys - Nerf Rivals Khaos - Manual

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Affordable Single Communication Buttons from Amazon

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Affordable Single Communication Buttons from Amazon

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Updated 50 Ideas for Simple Switch or Low Tech Activities, Updated 2015.doc

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Inspiration for one message communication

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Spectronics - Inclusive Learning Technologies

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101+ Ideas for Using the BIGmack or Other Single Message Communication Devices

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Activities to do with Powerlink

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Ideas on How to Use the PowerLink at - Computer Assistive ...

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Ideas on How to Use the PowerLink at - Computer Assistive Read more about plug, switch, symbol, control, snap and powerlink.

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About 350 years ago when I was in college, I worked in a special ed classroom that had an AbleNet "All-Turn-It" spinner . This clever sturdy device stole my heart on the spot. The teacher incorporated that switch-adapted spinner into activities and routines in her room throughout the day; it was amazing to see how many uses she had for this simple but powerful random spinner.

I n the words of Junie B. Jones , "I love[d] that fluffy thing!"

Fast forward 350 years to last week, when I was contemplating ways to help my own daughter choose random cards for a language game. An All-Turn-It would have been an ideal solution, but I don't have $120 sitting around home to spend on one.

Did we have anything around the house I could use?

You might have one of these inexpensive toys at your house too...or be able to find one without much trouble at your local craft store or online. My guess is that charity resale shops like Goodwill or Value Village carry them regularly as well.

Keep in mind that the average spinner/painter will be able to keep BOTH the spinner and painting functions, so it becomes a multi-purpose tool...

Directions for adapting the paint spinner for switch access can be found here .

Here are the directions for adapting the paint spinner into a random generator for games and dozens, if not hundreds, of other uses around home and school.

Switch-adapted paint spinner (directions for adapting found here )

Flexible soda straw-standard diameter or other as needed to fit snuggly over the center pin of the paint spinner

Cardboard support for overlays (I used two layers of poster paper; any flat cardboard should work)

1) Cut cardboard in a 9.25" circle. Our paint spinner has a removable splash guard I was able to trace around for the circle. Cut a ½" hole in the center using a craft knife. Smooth the edges of the hole using a round file. Set aside.

2) Lift paper holder off the center spindle. Keep it in the box for times you want to use the spinner for painting.

3) Unfold all but the small loop of a paper clip, insert down into straw. Bend to 90* angle.

4) Cut the long end of the straw to a point. 3 - 4 inches is a good length.

4) Slide the short end of the straw through the hole in the cardboard and onto the center spindle of the spinner.

5) A good spin with the switch should center the cardboard and overlay for you.

This light-weight pointer does not continue to spin when the switch is released. While this may make it feel like the selections are not random, we checked it out with a little data collecting and found that the selections do even out in time.

Now you are ready to create the overlays for games and other activities. Print out templates with 4, 8, or 12 spaces onto standard 8.5 x 11" paper. Cut out the halves, cut out the center hole, and tape or glue the halves together.

Add items to be randomly selected in the outer ring.

The inner ring of the overlays can hold a second set of random selections. Two spins gives a random pair, such as two dice, two numbers to add or multiply, or a noun and a verb to be used to create a silly sentence.

If you laminate the overlays, you can write on them and wipe them clean to use another time.

Use your imagination to find ways to use the spinner with other games and activities. Please share your ideas with us!

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About 350 years ago when I was in college, I worked in a special ed classroom that had an AbleNet "All-Turn-It" spinner . This clever sturdy device stole my heart on the spot. The teacher incorporated that switch-adapted spinner into activities and routines in her room throughout the day; it was amazing to see how many uses she had for this simple but powerful random spinner.

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Access YouTube videos and put a limit on it

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Access YouTube videos and put a limit on it

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PC ONLY (not iPad) - Easy accessible Video for all - Just 'copy' (Ctrl+c) the URL of the YouTube page (www.youtube....)

and 'paste' (Ctrl+v) into the 'YouTube Video URL box' below and click 'Easy Play the Video...' This page should work well in

the latest browsers. If you have an older version of Internet Explorer please consider adding the Chrome Frame Extension.

Making YouTube videos more interactive would be great for young children, either for learning or having fun. This facility can

also make a huge resource of 'switch accessible games.' This would be very useful for the inclusive classroom, for home learning

or simple for having great fun!

Important - if you click inside the YouTube video (to remove ads) or adjust the timer control - please click on a blank part of the page to

return control to the keyboard or switch.

Use the slider or input above to alter the 'time to pause.' When set - please click on a blank part of the screen to return control to the 'keyboard' or 'switch.'

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Make YouTube videos switch accessible for special needs. These games will help kidz learn 'cause and effect' switch access.

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PC ONLY (not iPad) - Easy accessible Video for all - Just 'copy' (Ctrl+c) the URL of the YouTube page (www.youtube....) and 'paste' (Ctrl+v) into the 'YouTube Video URL box' below and click 'Easy Play the Video...' This page should work well in the latest browsers.

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Enabling Devices: 20 Fun Switch Activities

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Enabling Devices: 20 Fun Switch Activities

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Enabling Devices: 10 Fun Activities Using Switch Adapted Toys

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Enabling Devices: 10 Fun Activities Using Switch Adapted Toys

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Ten Fun Activities with Switch Adapted Toys | Enabling Devices

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Information from Enabling Devices, providers of assistive technology and adapted products for people with disabilities.

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Resource with articles on switch use, paid/free activities, and vendors

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The world of assistive technology has come a long way since this blog started! More and more often our students have the option for direct selection, the fastest way, on a communication system. For many users options such as integrated conductive touch screens, head trackers, adapted joysticks and trackballs, and especially eye gaze tracking, have made switches less necessary in our field.

Still, switches have a place in our assistive technology tool kit. For learners with access needs that preclude direct selection through any possible means our next option is usually switch access. We tend to start with a single switch for cause and effect, yet few of our learners really need to learn cause and effect. If the child drops something, catches her head under her headrest, or does anything else for the entertainment of it or to seek attention the she already understands cause and effect. A few runs using a switch to turn on preferred music or a fun toy and you are ready to move on to other switch purposes.

At this point it is vital to begin with the end in mind. What will the child ultimately use switches for? If it is for communication, the most important thing we teach, then forego any extraneous steps when you look at a switch progression or heirarchy of skills. Your student doesn't need to learn to press and hold or turn on and turn off if ultimately you are seeking the student pressing and releasing a switch as part of a switch scan. Don't let these extra skills slow down communication access! You can develop them later, or program the communication system to eliminate their need.

It will be important to decide if your student will be using a one or two switch scan, also called an automatic scan or a step scan. In general an automatic or single switch scan requires to student to look and/or listen for the item needed and activate the switch with accurate timing for that item. A step scan or two switch scan requires the learner to use one switch as a mover and one as a chooser. With the mover switch the child progresses the scan and with the chooser he chooses the item he wants. In essence this decision is about is the child or will the child be more accurate if asked to time an activation of a single switch or if asked to coordinate the movements of two switches without worries about timing. It is important to work with your team on switch placement, type of switch and how switch use will be taught - with attention to keeping the end in mind. Here are some resources that can be used:

Articles about Switch Use
Switch Use On Various Platforms
Paid Software, Subscriptions and Apps for Teaching Switch Use

Free Switch Activities Online or Download (Cause and Effect unless otherwise noted)
Create Your Own Switch Scanning Activities and use Sharing Sites
Switch and Switch Interface Vendors

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The world of assistive technology has come a long way since this blog started! More and more often our students have the option for direct selection, the fastest way, on a communication system. For many users options such as integrated conductive touch screens, head trackers, adapted joysticks and trackballs, and especially eye gaze tracking, have made switches less necessary in our field.

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Switch Accessible Animated book about insects

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Explore books to use with switches

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How to connect switch to use with website

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Students can use 1, 2 or even 3 switches to access books on Tar Heel Reader. In order to use switches on Tar Heel Reader, a computer switch interface is needed. You can read more about Switch Interface Devices by clicking here.

Use 1 Switch to Access Tar Heel Reader

When using 1 switch, the student will only be able to have access to 1 function, i.e. paging forward through a book. The student will need help to do other functions, such as going back a page in a book, or to select a new book from the bookshelf. When possible, it may be easier to use 2-3 switches.

There are 3 options for using 1 switch. You can plug your switch into the port on the computer interface that has one of the following key equivalents.

1. Space key Student can use the switch to go forward through the book. They can also use the switch to move through the choices on the favorites page, finished book page, and the rating page, but they will need assistance to select something.

2. Right arrow key This option does the same thing as option 1.

3. Mouse click When using the switch as a mouse click, the cursor needs to be positioned on what needs to be clicked. On any of the pages where the student makes choices, the partner can do "partner assisted scanning," by moving the cursor to each choice and the student can use their switch to click/select to make a choice. When the student is reading a book, the cursor can be placed over the Next Page button. Each switch activation advances to the next page of the book.

Use 2 Switches to Access Tar Heel Reader: Modified 2-Switch Scanning

In order to maintain the simplicity of Tar Heel Reader, a partial scanning system has been used which combines switch scanning and directional use of the 2 switches. Traditional 2 switch scanning is used on the 3 different choice making pages where the student can choose a book, choose what to do at the end of the book, and rate the book. On the choice making pages, the student uses one switch (the "mover" switch) to move through the choices, and a second switch (the "picker" switch) to pick a choice. The functions of these 2 switches change when the student is reading an actual book. The mover switch changes into a "go to the next page" switch, allowing the student to move forward through the book. The picker switch changes into a "go back a page" switch.

There are 2 options for using 2 switches. You can plug your switches into the ports on the computer interface that have the following key equivalents. The functions of the switches have been included below.
*These same key equivalents can be used to page forward and page backward in a book that has been downloaded into Power Point.
Use 3 Switches: Directional Scanning

Accessing Tar Heel Reader with directional 3-switch scanning has been included to offer an alternative to 2-switch scanning. With 3 switches, one switch moves forward, the second switch moves back and the third switch makes a selection. This type of switch setup can be used with students who may not be typical switch users, such as students with Down syndrome or autism, or students who have some hand use but not enough to use a mouse or a Touch Window. Using 3 switches may also be a good option if an IntelliKeys is not available. The three switches can simply be mounted onto a table. (When Velcro does not work, many teachers have used duct tape or packing tape to tape down the switches and the wires.)

There is 1 option for using 3 switches. You can plug your switches into the ports on the computer interface that have the following key equivalents. When using the plug and play USB switch interfaces, all of these key equivalents are available in the same row. The functions of the switches have been included below.
*These same key equivalents can be used to page forward and page backward in a book that has been downloaded into Power Point. Go back to Accessing Tar Heel Reader

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Students can use 1, 2 or even 3 switches to access books on Tar Heel Reader. In order to use switches on Tar Heel Reader, a computer switch interface is needed. You can read more about Switch Interface Devices by clicking here.

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PowerPoint book that is switch accessible

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PowerPoint book that is switch accessible

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PowerPoint Book that is switch accessible

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Free to become a member for switch accessible games

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Our free activities have been carefully designed to help young people make progress with their access skills using assistive technology such as switches, touch devices, pointing devices and eye gaze systems. Use the topics folders below to select and download all of our free accessible activities to use on your PC computer.