2025 Toy Adaptation
Date: February 9, 2025
About
This year, we hosted our second annual Toy Adaptation event! We hosted both an advanced and a beginner adaptation session, and had over 50 students come to switch-adapt toys. They learned skills in soldering, circuit boards, and sewing as they opened each toy and rewired the internal switches to larger, 3D-printed external switches.
By the end of the event, 15 plastic and 35 plush toys were switch-adapted, providing an accessible way for children with hand mobility difficulties to play. A majority of the toys were donated to the Susan Gray School on Vanderbilt’s campus. Here, children with disabilities and typically developing children play and learn alongside one another.
Learn more about our different toy adaptation sessions below!
Advanced Session
Our first session, the advanced session, focused on adapting plastic toys. These toys are great for hospitals and schools because they can be wiped down/sanitized. They are also ideal for older children who have fewer accessible toy options.
Makers started by testing the buttons on each toy and determining which ones they wanted to adapt. They then opened up the toys, drilled holes for the audio cables, and resoldered the wires in the toy to the audio cables. Some of the toys required modifying the circuit board to ensure the toys were accessible.
Once the toy’s buttons were adapted, Makers put together the accessible external buttons. This year, the buttons were Vandy themed and utilized a limit switch on the inside.
By the end of the advanced session, 15 plastic toys were switch-adapted. Among the toys adapted in this session were bubble blowers, RC cars, spin art machines, star projectors, and jellyfish lamps!
Beginner Session
Our second session, the beginner session, focused on adapting interactive plush toys. These toys are great for individual children/families and are especially good for younger children.
Makers were given step-by-step instructions for adapting the plush toys. They started by seam ripping open each of the toys, snipping the wires leading to the toy’s current button, and resoldering them to an audio cable.
With the audio cables zip tied and hot glued in place for strain relief, the toys were sewed back up.
Lastly, Makers put together the accessible external buttons. The buttons used for the advanced toys were the same buttons used for the beginner toys.
By the end of the advanced session, 35 plush toys were switch-adapted. These toys lit up, played music, and repeated voices.
Project Documentation
The plastic toy documentation, created for the RC car, can be found here:
The plush toy documentation, created for the 2024 Toy Adaptation event, can be found here: Switch-Adapted Sloth Documentation
The accessible button documentation, created by Makers Making Change, can be found here: Interact Switch Documentation
