Touch!
by Gerry Kennedy
PC Compatible running MS Windows
Touch! from Inclusive Technology
Touch! is a wonderfully simple program that has been designed for MS Windows 95 or 98 based computers. Essentially it offers activities that are both visual and aural. The program uses four simple shapes: a star a circle, a triangle, and a square. Each of these shapes can be coloured. Colours include black, white, yellow, red, blue or green. The coloured shapes appear on the screen and can be small, medium or large in size.
Designed as a fully interactive program, the user is encouraged to touch (using a touch screen) or click on one or more of the shapes. The shapes can appear anywhere on the screen. The background colour can also be set to black, white, yellow, red, blue or green. The underlying premise and aim of the software is to invite young children, or older users who are vision impaired, to touch something. The program provides both visual and/or aural rewards. The tasks are simple. Teachers, parents and therapists can set up the program for visual stimulation, to encourage users to point, discriminate, track objects, learn to estimate time and master using an input device. It is an ideal program for practising and honing skills using a touch window.
To reward a child clicking or touching (or pressing their IntelliKeys board or switch), the program provides instant feedback with shapes building up on the screen. If a child touches a large circle, a pattern of large circles would progressively appear. Music is played as they build. Each shape has its own accompanying music. There are subtle musical variations so that the sound effects do not become repetitive, boring or too predictable. The music is soothing and ‘gentle’ so as not to startle young children or to over annoy or distract. If you listen carefully, the music for the star has five beats, the square four and the triangle three. Clever programming has ensured that the outcome is visually stimulating and enjoyable.
Keyboard Settings
When you launch Touch! the opening screen invites you to press ‘Play!’ or ‘view keyboard controls’. Keypad numbers 1-7 change colours. The ‘P’ key brings up the Preferences window, ‘O’ overrides rewards and ‘Q’ quits the program. The function keys (i.e. those keys located on most keyboards on the top row – [F1] – [F10]) provide options to change the shape, size of shape and how shapes appear and behave. These keyboard options can be accessed and used at any time during an active or before you commence play. They can be programmed onto an overlay as well.
Play Touch All
The user has to touch all of the shapes on the screen before a reward is earned. When you touch an object (or press space bar/enter/switch), the shape makes a sound and then it disappears. There are 1-4 objects.
Play Peep
A shape appears for a length of time anywhere around the edge of the screen (thus the ‘peep’ description). When it is touched, it makes its sound then disappears. If not touched within a time frame, it reappears somewhere else.
Play ‘Discriminate’
Between 1 and 4 objects appear on the screen, with the user needing to discriminate between the objects displayed. Only one object is correct. As with other activities, by after touching the correct one, music is played and it disappears.
Preferences
General Preferences: You choose between ‘touch all, ‘peep’ and ‘discriminate’ modes of play. You can set the background colour (choice of 6 colours). Rewards when turned on include a short, medium or long sound that matches the object colour or the colour cycle. The pointer can be shown as a small or large pointer. The pointer can be turned off as well. You can load and save ‘user settings’ so that you can tailor the program for individuals and keep their preferences stored for future use or for assessment/ record keeping purposes. Touch and reward sounds can be turned on or off.
Game Preferences: You can determine whether the user interacts with squares, circles, triangles or stars in small medium or large sizes displayed in one of six colours, shown randomly or sequentially. You can opt to have the user touch ‘exactly’ on the object, near it or anywhere on the screen. Animations can be switched on with 1-4 objects displayed at any one time. Peep mode can be set to ‘peep a little’, ‘a bit more’ or ‘a lot’! You can have an object peep from left, right, top or bottom of the screen or from any side in 5-second intervals (with a maximum of 30-second waiting time). The discrimination object can be set to one of the four shapes in 3 sizes and 6 colours.
In conclusion, Touch! is an extremely comprehensive and flexible visual awareness and discrimination program. Designed to cater to younger children it could be used very successfully with other students to learn colour size shape and numbers 1-4.