Making cognitive connections

The Making Cognitive Connections approach teaches the fundamental technical skills necessary to operate a PDA/smartphone while simultaneously drawing a parallel to the cognitive skills that underlie the development of those technical skills.

How various cognitive skills are used in relation to the Week Calendar HD app

Cognitive skill	Week Calendar HD feature/function	Examples of how this skill applies to this app
Sequencing	Week Cal Add Event screen	Start with first field and move sequentially down the screen field-by-field.
Categorization; decision making	Calendars button	Select appropriate Calendar for the appointment from Week Cal screen.
Planning	Alert field	Plan an appropriate time for the alert to remind you about an event.
Relevant vs. irrelevant information	Notes field	Determine appropriate information to include in the Notes field.

Real-life scenarios

Focusing on the cognitive skills required to use the device and then applying those same cognitive skills to everyday life examples makes this approach practical, concrete, relevant, and transferable.

How cognitive skills utilized for the Week Calendar HD app are also used in real-life examples

Cognitive skills	Week Calendar HD example	Example of real-life parallel
Sequencing; planning	Calendar alerts	You are going out to dinner with friends and don’t want to be late.
Attention to detail; sequencing	Repeat field	You have a monthly support group meeting.
Notetaking; relevant vs. irrelevant information	Notes field	You attend a meeting and take notes associated with the meeting outcome.