Over the last several weeks, we’ve looked at some of the key guidelines and issues related to “Design for Autism.” To wrap up this series, we’ll talk about an example of how Cloudberry is trying to put design for Autism into practice — at LifeTown, a new center for recreation, education, therapy, and leadership training currently under construction by Friendship Circle in Livingston, NJ.

To quickly recap the previous posts, Autism is a sensory processing disorder that leads to sensitivity to environmental stimuli. When designing with Autism in mind, some recommended guidelines include:

• Maintain “object in content”: People with Autism have an acute visual memory and rely heavily on environmental cues to understand the world around them, so it’s important that environments and experiences be designed to support expectations of sameness.

• Facilitate sensory integration:  Environmental design should be kept simple, so children are able to focus. For example, select soothing hues, use natural lighting instead of flickering fluorescents, and provide quiet spaces for “escape”.

• Set expectations: Many children with Autism are able to participate in and enjoy an experience more fully if they are able to “prep” for it in advance, so that they understand what the experience will be.

In our design work for LifeTown, we’ve tried to incorporate many of these guidelines, as well as other considerations. Some experiences are intended primarily for children with Autism and other special needs, including:

• The Sensory Play Room is an engaging physical play space for children that will be used for a combination of open play, physical therapy, and Friendship Circle programs. Clearly designated areas are set aside for different experiences, including quieter areas to rest or “escape”. The environment is made more immersive and more familiar by layering in a nature theme through graphic treatments and other design elements, so that the space resembles a park — the nature theme is also echoed in other spaces throughout LifeTown, to provide a sense of continuity.

• The Sand Room is a multi-sensory experience that evokes the familiar sights, sounds, and textures of a beach in a gentle way.  A soft breeze blows, and the sound of waves helps build the experience.

• The Snoezelen Room is a calm, safe space with off-the-shelf Snoezelen modules that support a variety of physical and sensory therapy experiences. Design elements evoke the look and feel of a magical forest at night, enhancing this experience and connecting it to the nature theme throughout.

Our design approach had to find a balance among a variety of aesthetic, experiential, and physical needs. We focused first on the fundamental design requirements for a general audience, and then iterated the design to emphasize simplicity, continuity, and familiarity in order to better accommodate those with special needs.

For example, the Art Room is a creative space that supports programming for both adults and children, with all the functionality and materials of a full art studio.  But it also includes design elements that integrate thematically with the other sensory-focused spaces at LifeTown, such as wall treatments with simple images of trees, leaves, and other nature-based patterns.

Throughout the building, a Wayfinding System helps orient visitors and guide them through the building, whatever their age or needs. It begins with a large, color-coded map on the lobby wall to set expectations about the experiences inside. The wayfinding system also includes simple, familiar images related to natural and urban environments, which connect visually to both the nature-themed sensory spaces.

In all of these ways, Cloudberry is trying to design for the special needs of Autism, while also practicing good experiential design in general.

More thoughts from Julia Fain and Friends

Hello again! In my last article, I shared a little about how my family prepares for different activities. Some of our daily outings take us to public spaces like the grocery store, restaurants, and museums. Here is a bit about what I have experienced with our son, Bryce.

In regard to shopping, Bryce does best if he has tasks to complete, such as looking for foods, pushing the cart, etc. Stores with lots of branding are difficult. When he sees a DVD, or fruit snacks with a super hero, or a new toy he can become instantly passionate and emotional about said product. I know end caps are necessary for marketers but as a mom I am not a fan. Shopping stores like Trader Joes are infinitely easier to shop in due to the smaller store size and lack of branded packaging.

Relating to restaurants, our family almost always eats at fast food or order up front style. They tend to be casual and it isn’t noticeable when Bryce needs to hop up and down while he eats. He can not make it through a sit down restaurant without hiding under the booth. I believe from all the noise and smells and having to sit still. We try to work on this with coloring sheets and breaks (walks outside).

I realize that my experience is very much singular to our family. So I asked a few friends (with children on the autism spectrum) for feedback and they had wonderful ideas.

From my friend Sharon: “…I talk about how the sound of the room overwhelms Caleb; how people’s voices echo if the ceilings are really high, how employees interact with us, if there’s music playing in a foyer…we never ever take an elevator anywhere, so we’re very fond of carpeted stairwells because the carpet absorbs the noise of clanking steps and squeaky doors.” (Sharons blog: http://cayubsmum.blogspot.com/) she writes about autism and her family there.)

From my friend Grace: “…every kid with autism is different! For us too, our major challenge is often loud noises. Interactive play is enjoyed but not if it requires working with other children. For us, drawing is a great way to interact with an exhibit. Our local art museum has a room for children and Elijah loves it, there’s freedom to move around the different centers at will (or skip the ones he doesn’t feel comfortable with), and there’s also a place to try out the same types of art currently on exhibit. (Grace’s blog is here: http://roweadventures.com/)

Multiple friends mentioned their kids disliking automatic hand dryers and toilets. I most definitely agree. If an automatic hand dryer needs to be used, at least give a towel option! And pick driers that aren’t incredibly loud. Also mentioned by my friends to watch for and plan around: crowds, noise level of exhibits, temperature, sounds.

Thoughts from Guest Blogger, Julia Fain

When I was asked to share a little about autism and how it affects our family I was all in. My background is in product design and I constantly see ways that businesses could make transitions easier for children on the spectrum. Our son was diagnosed with PDD-NOS on the spectrum by a developmental pediatrician at age four. At that point we had been in speech therapy for a year and a half, with some occupational therapy for picky eating and sensory integration. More recently he has been documented with high functioning autism, similar to Aspergers.

A lot of what I do day today with Bryce involves prep work. I give him a plan, usually three or four things. He is very happy with that but once the plan is set there isn’t room for much deviation. I keep our days pretty basic, I pick grocery stores and libraries and parks that he is familiar with and we have good experiences with. I only try new museums and malls with the support of my husband, especially because I also need to watch his younger sister. This is because he tends to wander in new environments (so much to look at!) and in case he has a meltdown.

Bryce is highly visual, so I often try to do prep-work with photos. Before we started swim lessons I went to the pool-site and took pictures. I then went home and showed Bryce, so the visual picture in his head would be in line with reality. The internet really helps with this. Last fall we took a trip to a cabin in Wisconsin, and he cried a good bit that first day because the logs were vertical instead of horizontal. This summer when we went to the beach I was sure to first show him website photos of our motel and overhead maps. He was all joy when we arrived at the beach motel. And one thing I know Bryce really loves: maps. Visual way-finding maps paired with visual storyboarding is a non-auditory way to communicate with him and it works really well.

Technology is also very very appealing to Bryce. This is often used in wait rooms, which does bring comfort, but it is can also be very hard to transition away from when it is time to leave, or go to an appointment. Fish tanks are a nice alternative. They are soothing to watch, have a mild sound, and aren’t as hard to transition from, at least in my experience!

With the rise in Autism and Autism Spectrum disorders over the past 30 years, it is imperative that designers, educators, and museum professionals rethink the designed environment to meet the needs of both general and special needs audiences. For the next several weeks, Cloudberry Studio will share insights about different elements of design for Autism, with the aim to start conversations around this important topic.

Autism is a developmental disorder that alters the nerve cells and synapses that collect and organize sensory information (sights, sounds, textures, smells, and tastes) within the brain. How this occurs is not well understood, but we do know children with Autism are highly sensitive to environmental stimuli, with a tendency to overreact or underreact. Symptoms become apparent in children before three years of age, and typically include impaired social interaction and communication skills (both verbal and non-verbal), as well as restricted or repetitive behavior. There is no known cure for Autism, and treatment focuses on reducing developmental deficits and stresses, in order to increase quality of life and independence.

While it may not be appropriate (or even possible) to modify all designed environments for Autistic children, we should exercise awareness when designing spaces they routinely visit, such as therapy rooms, schools, and doctor’s offices. These modifications raise their own challenges, because designing spaces for children with Autism is almost counter-intuitive — as designers, we aim to create engaging experiences that integrate sight, sound, texture, and even smell into the environment, but this multi-sensory experience could prove disastrous for a child with Autism.

This week we will focus on a concept called “Object in Content” to learn how following a few basic design principles can help children (and adults) with Autism function better in the environments we design. While the color or placement of objects within a space may seem purely aesthetic or even meaningless to most of us, people with Autism have an acute visual memory and rely heavily on environmental cues to understand the world around them. The term “Object in Content” refers to the Autistic person’s need for “sameness” in a given environment. They learn to recognize certain objects within the location where they encounter them first. Out of context, like a school teacher at the grocery store, they may not be recognized or even understood!

When designing with Autism in mind, here are a few guidelines that consider “Object in Content”:

• Permanent objects within a given space, like chairs around a table, should all appear to be the same, so slight modification will not cause disruption.

• Larger permanent objects, such as counters or storage, should be fixed in place so they cannot be moved around the space.

• Toys and objects should have a specific “place” to be stored for future use.

Be sure to check out our next articles in the series to learn more about this important design challenge.