Twisty
Problem
Problem
Problem
As children grow they demand autonomy
A desire for experimentation, natural curiosity and high energy make a toddler desperate to control the world around them which can be frustrating for kids and parents
Toddlers' fine and gross skills make it hard to turn small knobs and switches, making them dependent in their parents to manipulate their environment.
Solution
Toddlers enjoy doing meaningful "adult" tasks.
Create opportunities for autonomy through the set up the physical environment to help toddlers become more independent
Skills used
Rhino
Keyshot
Rapid Prototyping
User research
Children learn by interacting with their surroundings
Cognitive thinking and motor skills are developed through experimentation.
By adding natural curiosity and high energy, we have a toddler desperate to control the world around them.
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How might we support kids learning while promoting autonomy ?
In a world full of products with hard interactions and screens at a young age it is difficult for toddlers to
interact with their surroundings, leading to dependency & frustration
Twisty is a way of discovering the world
While empowering children through the control of their environment
Fun
Accessible
Satisfying
Final Prototype
Why a lamp?
"Toddlers enjoy doing meaningful adult tasks"
A lamp is a crucial element of their night time routines, yet they consist on small knobs and switches that are hard to operate for toddlers and preschoolers.
and they are Boring!
Kids
Adults
Classic interaction
Innovative interaction
Twisty
Research
Target audience
Researched on the social, emotional, language, cognitive and physical development milestones to understand their behaviors, abilities and limitations when interacting with everyday products.
"Children begin to acquire fine motor skills as early as 1 or 2 months old and continue to learn additional skills through preschool and early elementary school"
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Children +5
Caregivers
Children 2-5
Parents
Older children struggling with fine mottor skills
Adults seeking for a fun interaction
Adults struggling with fine motor skills
As it was hard for me to interview toddlers I decided to interview their parents who gave me insights on their interaction with lamp and their night routine. This allowed me to develop a task analysis to understand the use case of the product I wanted to design and
I also interviewd a Fisher Price senior designer who gave me important considerations to design for kids.
5
Parent Interviews
1
Expert interview
From pain points
Children not able to turn on lamp; frustration
When left alone toddlers can’t keep track of time
Children scared of the dark
To features
Create an easy and fun interaction
Providing visual clues for the passage of time
Including a Night Light
Exploratory Sketches
Refined Concept
Tested iteratively
During the whole process I was User testing, gathering feedback, going back to the drawing board and prototyping. The product evolved from the insights collected during the 4 rounds of test
Testing how interesting is the interaction
Finding the right balance between toy and household object
Tested in young adults to make sure it would remain interesting as the kid grows
Fully functional prototype tested with target audience
Final Results
Accessible
Easily accessible from multiple angles
It is comfortable, waves act as grip and the cap fits
nicely in the hand
Fun and satisfying
Satisfying body texture
Users enjoy the spinning interaction
"It is satisfying "
Intuitive
First reaction of young adults is to push the top as they didn't expect a lam that spins
"It is a pleasant surprise"
Kids went straight to turn it
After knowing it spins they had an easy time controlling
the light
Looking towards the future
Twisty offers a delightful interaction with an everyday object. It is inspired in the children's curiosity where exploring the world requires interesting and fun experiences. This product is just the beginning of a collection of everyday objects to inspire exploration and autonomy in children's routines. It is an object that seeks to empower kids and make them feel in control of their world. This can be further expanded with products for different age ranges and interactions.
Although made for kids, twisty was found interesting by young adults, I find it is a way of bringing back that inner child to play and find beauty and fun in the ordinary.
Reflection
During this project I worked from the children's perspective. This process was different becauseI would go from sketch to prototype over and over after each round of prototyping.
A big turning point for the project was the moment where I 3d printed a rough model as it changed completely the aspect of the final product as users found it more interesting than a solid body.
As I couldn't interview toddlers, I interviewed parents which automatically made me look for ways to provide value for them. This is achieved through the indepence of the kid, being able to control their environment for playing, reading and other activities. This by no means seeks to replace the parent but just aid on the learning process of the child.
Having the opinion of a senior toy designer helped a lot as it made me consider different aspects such as play patterns and intercative feedback among other important considerations.