For Us
Fostering a Supportive Community with Parents and Caregivers in Mind
OVERVIEW
The world can be overwhelming. Helping your child should not be. From weekly activities to special events, our tool simplifies the process to connect your child to the community. Our mission is fostering a supportive community among parents and caregivers to support their children.
ROLES
UI/UX Designer
PROJECT SPECIFICATIONS + DELIVERABLES
Jun 2022 - Oct 2022 (4 months)
Interaction Design: High Fidelity Interactive Prototype
UX/UI Design
Competitive Analysis
User Surveys and Interviews
Affinity Mapping
User Personas
User Flows
User Testing
User Interviews
Problem
Create a "one-stop-shop” for parents and caregivers to easily locate activities for their neurotypical & neurodiverse children
Determine the areas of needs that is important to the users
Solution
A simple and intuitive process for parents/caregivers to quickly search for activities within their neighborhood
An option to save and favorite activities for easier access
“As a parent, I want to locate activities within the city, so that I can support my child.”
RESEARCH
Better understanding through Competitive Analysis
As of now, there has not been an app or concept that allows parents to quickly research activities for their neurotypical and/or neurodivergent children. When completing secondary research on the current resources avaliable, mostly print media (i.e. visual supports - Picture Exchange Communication System, resource books) and social media discussion boards are utilized.
The Picture Exchange Communication System (PECS) is commonly used for neurodivergent individuals to communicate with others. One can point to the picture, to indicate what their wants and needs are.ex. When a child needs help to opening a jar, they can point to the picture symbol “help”.PROS:
Allows instant feedback and conversation between users
CONS:
Mostly print media, which allows limited access to resources
There is a lot of information within social media groups and it makes it hard to sort through the resources
Curated with our Users in Mind
The first step was to conduct user research to determine the users needs. Five Participants were recruited and met the criteria of:
Living within the New York City metro area
Parent of at least one neurodivergent and/or neurotypical child
Has access to technology through mobile device, tablet, or computer
“I can locate & bookmark the activity, so that I can return to the activity at a later time...”
“As a parent, I want to locate activities within the city, so that I can support my child...
”
“As a parent, I want to a community, so I can connect with those around me...”
Through Affinity Mapping, the information gathered from the User interviews were synthesized. Parents demonstrated common barriers and constraints when researching resources for their children, such as time and lack of consistency within the current platforms.
Deepening User Empathy
With a better understanding of the user population, it was important to create one database that allows users to easily access activities information within their neighborhood. Users expressed frustration with the inconsistency and oftentimes feel hopeless.
Let’s meet Sarah
One Persona, Sarah, was created to represent our user population. Sarah is a working parent with two children. She finds herself overwhelmed with work and staying present as a mother. She is actively seeking activities for her children and parent support groups to lessen caregiver burden.
DESIGN
Style Guide
PROTOTYPE + TEST
During the first round of user testing, I discovered that there were too many steps when searching for an activity.
Some users were bored and were not interested in the multiple steps when searching for an activity.
There was also some confusion when asked to search an activity. The users were stuck between pressing categories or utilizing the search bar.
The final product addresses the problem by putting the filters (activity type, city and month) onto one page to decrease the receptiveness and confusion.
It allows the users access their search history and quickly search for the activity
High Fidelity Prototype
Searching for an Activity
Users can add an activity onto their calendar by pressing the calendar icon. If the activity isn’t on the app, they can manually add the activity onto their calendar.
Adding an Activity onto Calendar
Users can add an activity onto their calendar by pressing the calendar icon. If the activity isn’t on the app, they can manually add the activity onto their calendar.
Favoriting an Activity
In order to search for an activity, the user will enter the intended activity, location, and month. Then, it will yield the desired results.
WRAP UP
Reflection
The main takeaways were the importance of user research when designing the For Us app. I originally designed an app that primarily emphasized my needs, but it not very efficient for users that were constantly on the go. After adjustments, the participants recruited for the user research demonstrated greater ease of the product.
For Us will be a mobile app, as it is the most accessible and easily accessed platform for our audience.
Future Considerations
Adding an option to link For Us Calendar with a widely used virtual calendar (i.e. Google, Apple)
Creating a forum or communication platform for parents to interact and socialize.
The option to rate and submit comments regarding each activity or event.