Emotion Detective app for iPhone and iPad

*** AS SEEN ON THE AUSTRALIAN TODAY SHOW ***

Praise for Emotion Detective:
"My son and I have used this App to assist with his social skills and to improve his ability to read social situations and the emotions that come into play when interacting with others. We have been delighted with this App and would strongly recommend it to other parents or carers with an autistic child or, indeed, for any child with difficulties interacting with peers." Susan (parent)

Emotion Detective is an exciting iPad application for young children with autism spectrum disorders. Emotion Detective has adapted the core social skill deficits identified in individuals with ASD by Scott Bellini (2006) into 4 fun games that will engage your child in learning. These deficits include difficulty:

• Identifying emotions in others and themselves
• Understanding non-verbal forms of communication or body language
• Initiating and maintaining conversations
• Understanding the perspectives of others
• Self awareness

Emotion Detective asks the child to solve the exciting mysteries that have been occurring around the town of Emotiana. The game is full of eye spy screens, interactive animations and exciting sounds. Mixed in with all the fun are the learning activities that aim to teach basic emotions, body language, conversation and perspective taking. The game also features inbuilt reward systems, with only positive reinforcement provided to keep your child motivated and on task. Once the child has solved all 4 mysteries they are rewarded with an Emotion Detective Certificate that they can email and print in recognition of their learning and achievement.

The child plays the game in partnership with their parent, teacher or health professional. The importance of practicing social skills with people is not lost here, and the game has inbuilt tutorials that guide the adult in their discussions with the child. It is expected that the childs learning experience will be enriched by the discussions and role-plays they engage in with the adult away from the iPad.

Once the child has a solid understanding of each concept and they have role played it with an adult in a safe environment, they are ready to practice implementing the skills with their peers. Emotion Detective is the first step on a childs path to social success.

This app is a must for any parent, educator or allied health professional who has difficulty engaging their child with boring photocopied worksheets or lengthy discussions about social skills. Add this app to your teaching tool belt now and watch your teaching sessions go from “not now” to “wow!”

Key features:

• Australian voice overs
• Save game feature so that you can always come back to your game in between learning sessions
• Positive reinforcement
• Interactive reward screens designed on popular interests of children with ASD
• Completion certificate that can be emailed then printed for the child
• Utilises the IPad 2/3 camera features

*Bellini, S. (2006) Building Social Relationships: A Systematic Approach to Teaching Social Interaction Skills to Children and Adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorders and Other Social Difficulties