Supporting children with Down Syndrome with Coco

Down syndrome is a non-hereditary chromosomal abnormality that leads to the presence of three chromosomes 21.

This pathology influences the development of the child who reaches the stages of its development with a more or less marked delay.

Dynseo and its team are very involved in the development of children and their goal is to allow all children with Down syndrome to develop in harmony and serenity. By following the child’s rhythm, we can give them the tools to be autonomous and live well in society.

Down syndrome is a congenital anomaly that can lead to difficulties in language, visual perception, motor skills or cognitive abilities. Each child has a different delay that varies according to their abilities and depends on several factors.

Did you know that each year, about 1 in 1,000 babies are born with Down Syndrome worldwide?

COCO FOR CHILDREN WITH DOWN SYNDROME

Dynseo offers Coco, an educational memory coach on tablets and smartphones for children. Coco helps you to stimulate the cognitive functions that are involved in the development of children.

Coco accompanies you everywhere, because the app does not require Wi-Fi (Wi-Fi is only needed for updates).

Today Coco accompanies children with Down syndrome through their speech therapists, psychologists, and psychomotor therapists, in residence, at the office or for home help. Professionals who wish to subscribe to Coco can benefit from an online monitoring platform. This platform allows them to see the evolution and improvement of people with Down Syndrome to personalize their care.

Coco offers a solution that takes into consideration both the emotional aspect (by offering fun games) and the cognitive aspect (by offering cognitive stimulation games) of a child’s development. Everyone wins!

Here is a summary that allows you to see with which games you can help a child with Down syndrome according to their needs.

TYPES OF DOWN SYNDROME

There are different forms of Down syndrome because each child is different, with specific difficulties and needs. It is therefore important to personalize the work for each child. Thanks to 3 levels of difficulty Coco can be used and adapted to each form of Down syndrome.

Among the different Down Syndrome genes, there is Trisomy 21, where three copies of chromosome 21 instead of two, translocation happens when only a part of chromosome 21 breaks off during cell division and attaches to another chromosome, or mosaic trisomy, where there is a mixture of two types of cells, some containing 47 chromosomes and others 46.

The follow-up of a child with Down syndrome differs according to the form of Down syndrome he has. We will therefore advise you on the use of the COCO app according to the various stages of Down Syndrome.

Mild Down Syndrome (stage 1)

Cognitive and developmental delays are mild. The child has below average skills. As the child grows, the difference in skills with others will increase, but they will be able to live semi-independently or fully independently and will be able to maintain a small amount of work. At this stage you can use the games at difficult levels

In addition, the pictures help stimulate lexical access.

All these skills are fundamental in creating and maintaining independence.

You can also ask the child to name and memorize the pictures to stimulate language and verbal memory.

In addition, to move the cards you stimulate the eye-hand coordination.

To move the ball, the child must press the arrows on the right side of the screen, thus stimulating finger motor skills.

In this game, there are several objects (the ball, the obstacles, Coco) so you also stimulate divided attention.

Moderate Down Syndrome (stage 2)

The cognitive delay is greater, and the child can learn and improve skills to a certain limit. The person will still need help in daily life but can do small jobs in a protected environment. At this stage you can use games at the medium level.

You can stimulate finger motor skills by asking the child to touch the ball with a different finger each time the ball appears, or you can alternate between right and left hands to stimulate bimanual skills.

To finish the game, you must hit ten balls, which increases the amount of time the child can and should pay attention.

Severe Down Syndrome (stage 3)

The developmental delay is significant and influences many cognitive functions. The child needs a lot of assistance and is not able to achieve independence. In this situation you can use games with easy levels.

Once the animal pairs are identified, the child uses eye-hand coordination and fine motor skills to select the correct animal and slide it into the arch.

Have them pick up the first animal with one finger and the second with another finger to stimulate fine motor skills or have them alternate hands to stimulate bimanual skills.

Finally, ask the child to name the animal to stimulate lexical access or ask the child to pick up the animal you just named to improve comprehension.

You can see if the child uses any strategies to complete the picture (do they start at the edges, or do they build on the main picture? Do they look at just the pieces or the final picture as well?). 

There are many ways to complete a puzzle so you can augment the child’s mental patterns.

AREAS OF FRAGILITY IN DOWN SYNDROME

A child with Down’s syndrome can have a variable cognitive delay, different difficulties at more or less severe stages.

Coco can be adapted to a severe form of Down syndrome, but also to the cognitive functions you want to improve.

Cognitive disorders

Children with Down syndrome still have cognitive difficulties which may be difficulties in recognizing or classifying objects, difficulties in planning or in establishing strategies which are simple and limited. Cognitive stimulation for children with Down syndrome is possible and can help them improve their skills and enrich their strategies.

Ask them to name the animals or habitats and describe them to also work on language.

The memory game is a game known by all children and can therefore become an activity to share with friends.

Visual skills

Often children with Down syndrome also show problems in visual skills. You may see impaired visual perception, difficulty following objects or visual analysis. These skills are important to be able to act in the environment and reach a good stage of autonomy.

In addition, the action to be conducted is not always the same, so the child must change their mental scheme to act according to the stimuli present.

With these differences you stimulate the activation and inhibition of movement as the child must find the requested object quickly but carefully (if the child must look for the colour twice in a row and then must look for the shape, he must inhibit the concept of “colour” and activate the concept of “shape”).

The child must also perform visual analysis of the images and colour classification.

Motor skills

A symptom present in Down Syndrome is the presence of hypotonia, that is to say, an alteration in muscle tone. This condition influences the child’s motor skills and slows down the acquisition of different motor steps. Thanks to Coco, it is possible to stimulate motor skills with ” Coco moves “, a sporty and dynamic break to learn to know their body and their movements.

All the positions proposed work on the balance, so, to maintain the position, the child must modulate their muscular tone.

If you ask Coco to follow the choreography, you also stimulate body image and the perception of their body in space.

TWO-PLAYER GAMES

Children with Down syndrome are often very social and affectionate. They want to play with others and be part of a group, even if the relationship with other children is not always easy. The difference between the skills of children with Down syndrome and their peers can sometimes create a distance, but it is especially important for them to have a group of friends with whom to play and share activities. Coco offers an effective solution because the program offers games for two. Children with Down syndrome can share an activity with their friends thanks to a tool that allows everyone to play safely.

With this game you can create a collective and inclusive activity.

In addition, you stimulate cognitive functions such as discrimination, hearing, attention, and memory.

Coco also accompanies children with other developmental disabilities.

Here is what Coco offers you:

• 30+ educational games,
• reflex and attention games,
• a sports break after 15 minutes of screen time.

DON’T WAIT ANY LONGER, SUSCRIBE TO COCO!