04/05/06

1.  Select a colorful name for your group, such as Eagles or the Super Sports.  It may take some time for all of the group members to select a name, but this will help all the members realize what the team is about.

2.  Discuss some of the difficulties of daily living that people with    disabilities might encounter.  Consider those who are wheelchair bound or have visual or hearing impairment.  Do some research.  If possible, interview someone with a disability and learn about the obstacles that person must overcome each day.  As an alternative, simulate a disability by wearing a blindfold or restraining one arm and then try to do a simple task like making a sandwich.  What was most difficult about the task and why?

3.  Identify one problem to solve.  Here are some suggestions.  Try to think of others.

• Device to help a wheelchair-bound person pick up small items from the floor.

• Device to help a wheelchair-bound person open wide, outward swinging doors.

• System to assist a visually impaired person in locating the entrance to a public building.

• System to assist a visually impaired person in determining the color of clothes and whether they match.

• System to wake a hearing impaired person in the morning.

• Device to help someone whose hands are impaired open doors with knobs.

4.  Write a problem statement.

5.  Use brainstorming to arrive at a potential solution to the problem.

6.  Select two or three potential solutions and develop them with sketches and written descriptions.

7.  Review all the sketches and descriptions.  Select one idea that meets all the criteria and constraints in your problem statement.  Make any adjustments that are necessary to refine it.

8.  Create a poster or simple model that shows how your solution will work.  Your poster or model must include the problem statement and a brief explanation of the solution.  A poster must also include a simple drawing of the device that will solve the problem. 

9.  Present your groups solution.