Multimedia camp empowers disabled kids

Creative and artistic exploration is an important element of childhood development. Jutta Treviranus saw how important drawing, painting, dancing, and making music were to her five year old daughter, and she realized that some of the physically disabled children she worked with at the Hugh MacMillan Rehabilitation Centre in Toronto, Ontario, were missing out on an important aspect of development. As a specialist in microcomputer applications, she also knew that computer technology-specifically art, music, multimedia, virtual reality applications and input devices-has evolved to the point where it can fill that gap. The result was a nine-week summer day camp where kids and adults whose disabilities prevent them from holding a crayon or playing a musical instrument learned to create art and music. Indeed, children as young as three years old could (with a little help) create their own multimedia presentations.<>