Nintendo Wii and Autism
Looking at Myomancy’s logs I can see that quite a few people are coming here searching for information on the Nintendo Wii and autism. So far Myomancy has only incidentally connected the two subjects. However it seems that a lot parents are ahead of me and wish to know whether the Wii is suitable for autistic children.
The difficultly in answering this question is that autism covers a very wide range of problems. From high function autistics to adults who still haven’t become fully toilet trained. With such a wide range of abilities, one answer cannot fit all cases. However at least one therapist is using a Wii in the therapy for an autistic boy.
Using the Wii is straightforward and may be more natural to a child than a traditional console because a lot of games are played by moving the whole arm rather than pressing small buttons. Selecting the right game is key as there is a wide range in their complexity. Games aimed at younger children are more likely to suit an autistic child as they will expect a lower level of hand/eye coordination. I’ve added a section to the Myomancy Store specifically for Wii games and Autism featuring games aimed at younger children.
I haven’t tried any of the games in the store and I don’t have a great deal of personal experience one-on-one with autistic children so it is very hard for me to give good advice. So I ask everyone who finds this page to comment below on your experience with the Wii and autism. Has your autistic child had the chance to play with a Wii? What game was it and how did they cope with it? If you’ve not yet tried a Wii, what questions would you like answering? With luck we can build up a guide to parents of autistic children and the Nintendo Wii.
Find Out More:
Books:
- Yoga Games for Children: Fun and Fitness with Postures, Movements and Breath (SmartFun Activity Books)
- Reaching Out, Joining in: Teaching Social Skills to Young Children With Autism (Topics in Autism)
- My Friend with Autism: A Coloring Book for Peers and Siblings
- Autism Siblings
- Nature’s Ritalin for the Marathon Mind: Nurturing Your ADHD Child With Exercise
January 30th, 2008
Autism, Autism Treatment, Nintendo Wii
Comments on: Nintendo Wii and Autism
I convinced my wife to get the Wii for us this last Christmas. My son is 8 years old and on the high functioning side of the spectrum.
He loves the sports games. He plays Wii Sports and Mario & Sonic At The Olympics a lot. He is very inexperienced with sports due to typical autism type issues and the Wii has acted as a trainer.
Because the Wii mimics real life movements now that he is successful at playing these games he does have a desire to transition his new skills to real life.
It was really cool seeing him try baseball the first time where you have to hold the Wii remote like the handle of a bat. Instructing him to keep his elbows up and the bat back just like real baseball. The character on the screen holding the bat just as he is the controller matching the angles.
Now he has a reference point in real life. Now he has a clue and a physical imprint of at least being able to participate in a sport when ready.
He has started asking me to take him bowling and has started playing with his Putt Putt set since the Wii came into our life.
Posted by: Mike March 18th, 2008 at 6:56 pm
My son is 5.5 years old with a medical and educational diagnosis of autism. At his last school meeting I was told he is “super high-functioning”. His current behavior therapist recommended a website (www.starfall.com) and he picked up the use of the touchpad on my laptop immediately. Since our Wii is connected to the internet (and I wanted my laptop back!) I decided to bring starfall up on the Wii and see if he could figure out the remote. I was amazed! He had never before taken an interest in Wii Sports or anything else on the Wii that the rest of the family plays. After he figured out how to navigate with the remote, he is now able to play the shooting game on Wii Play, and he loves the photo channel and he uses the doodle and mood features to change the photos we have copied over to the Wii. I am extremely amazed at his success at this hand-eye coordination and the reason I found this website is because I am searching for more games suitable for an autistic child. Over the last couple of days, he has taken an interest in his older sister’s Nintendo DS and the camera on my cell phone. I hope word gets out to the autistic community about this!
Posted by: Susan August 3rd, 2008 at 3:28 pm
I have two children with autism ages 7 and 8 and neither is high functioning (Aspergers). The Wii has been a wonderful asset. It has improved my son’s hand-eye coordination and his large motor skills. He would never want to play a family game with us and preferred to play alone. Now he invites us to play with him. The Wii is very visual which is perfect for kids with autism. We have Wii Sports, Wii Play, Wii Carnival and Cookin Mama. Now we just added Wii Fit and they love it, plus they are getting exercise. My kids with autism had never been able to play other video games. We love it and I highly recommend it!
Posted by: mary schneider August 5th, 2008 at 4:06 am
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