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Mar 6, 2012 #1
Think of one idea that you have executed which challenged you to be creative in a new way. For example: a problem that you solved; a thing that you made; a situation that you encountered. Tell us about your idea and execution. You may add up to two images (optional).
-Describe the problem you solved: *
I decided to volunteer at a school for autistic children in Pretoria during my last term in high school. However, I had no prior knowledge regarding the condition and internet research alone did not seem sufficient. Wanting to maximize my experience with the children, I tried to find a more practical approach to learn about autism.
-Describe your creative solution to the problem: *
Being a design student in school, I came up with the idea of designing and creating a mockup of a room intended specifically for autistic children. I felt the idea could not be more fitting, as it could serve simultaneously as one out of my three school projects for my design class. I spoke to my teacher about it and she deemed the idea great.
Using library books and hundreds of different websites as my foundation for learning about the condition, I began to jot down all the important aspects of autism. What exactly it is, what its symptoms are, the type of surroundings best suited to autistic children, the things that they are both least and most sensitive to. Everything. I also looked up pictures of rooms that have been designed for this purpose in order to get an even clearer vision for my design.
After initial sketches and technical drawings, I finally began making my mockup. Soothing colours such as greens and greys against whites, along with splashes of primary colours -just enough not to affect the children's sensitivity- eventually began to come alive. I designed equipment and toys specifically aimed at helping autistic children with social interaction, calmness and physical exercise. Keeping in mind that these were still children I was dealing with, I tried not to deviate too much from keeping the room child-friendly and playful.
Designing this room was definitely fun but not always easy and at one point I even wondered why I had decided to do it. Nevertheless, the knowledge I gained from it was very rewarding and fulfilling. Not only did I feel entirely ready to impart what I had learnt from it to the children but it also taught me so much about the subject of design. The amount I knew about autism the first time the idea popped into my head to volunteer increased so greatly once I was done with the project, and ultimately, my dilemma was solved.
Feedback on the general idea (if it's fitting for the question), spelling mistakes and grammar corrections will be greatly appreciated! Thanks :)
-Describe the problem you solved: *
I decided to volunteer at a school for autistic children in Pretoria during my last term in high school. However, I had no prior knowledge regarding the condition and internet research alone did not seem sufficient. Wanting to maximize my experience with the children, I tried to find a more practical approach to learn about autism.
-Describe your creative solution to the problem: *
Being a design student in school, I came up with the idea of designing and creating a mockup of a room intended specifically for autistic children. I felt the idea could not be more fitting, as it could serve simultaneously as one out of my three school projects for my design class. I spoke to my teacher about it and she deemed the idea great.
Using library books and hundreds of different websites as my foundation for learning about the condition, I began to jot down all the important aspects of autism. What exactly it is, what its symptoms are, the type of surroundings best suited to autistic children, the things that they are both least and most sensitive to. Everything. I also looked up pictures of rooms that have been designed for this purpose in order to get an even clearer vision for my design.
After initial sketches and technical drawings, I finally began making my mockup. Soothing colours such as greens and greys against whites, along with splashes of primary colours -just enough not to affect the children's sensitivity- eventually began to come alive. I designed equipment and toys specifically aimed at helping autistic children with social interaction, calmness and physical exercise. Keeping in mind that these were still children I was dealing with, I tried not to deviate too much from keeping the room child-friendly and playful.
Designing this room was definitely fun but not always easy and at one point I even wondered why I had decided to do it. Nevertheless, the knowledge I gained from it was very rewarding and fulfilling. Not only did I feel entirely ready to impart what I had learnt from it to the children but it also taught me so much about the subject of design. The amount I knew about autism the first time the idea popped into my head to volunteer increased so greatly once I was done with the project, and ultimately, my dilemma was solved.
Feedback on the general idea (if it's fitting for the question), spelling mistakes and grammar corrections will be greatly appreciated! Thanks :)
