A Day at the Beach

We had lunch at our favourite restaurant. Then we went to the beach to throw rocks into the lake. When we were at the beach we saw an amazing surfer with a massive kite. We saw him flying in the air. Wow!

The above passage was written by 14-year-old Aviva, who like many teens loves to journal about her day. Yet before using a groundbreaking assistive writing software developed at the Bloorview Research Institute, Aviva – who has Down’s Syndrome and scoliosis – found the act of writing difficult and even painful.

“Writing ten sentences by hand is challenging for Aviva,” says her mom, Janine. “Typing is easier because your hand shape is physiologically different than when holding a pencil. The software takes that ease of use one step further by helping Aviva take her thoughts and put them into written form.”

That software is WordQ, developed by Dr. Fraser Shein, CEO of Quillsoft and former engineer and scientist at Holland Bloorview for 30 years. WordQ is designed for accessibility, and supports the unique needs of disabled and neurodivergent people to read, write, and type on a screen using word prediction and speech feedback, as well as other strategies to help improve writing and reading.

Five years ago, Aviva and her mom were introduced to WordQ by Holland Bloorview’s Communication and Writing Aids (CWAS) team, who sourced the technology for her.

“The team did an amazing job, and it was the only time in Aviva’s life that this skill has been properly assessed,” says Janine. She worked with the CWAS team to apply for government funding through the Assistive Devices Program to cover a portion of the cost of the system, and was able to obtain an accessible computer with WordQ software.

“WordQ is great for its predictive technology,” says Janine. “It offers a list of words that Aviva has used before that she can start to recognize and choose from. A child who is given genuine choice feels empowered – they gain confidence, which is huge for kids with unique needs. And that confidence is a massive step forward in learning how to write.”

A history of innovation at Holland Bloorview

WordQ is one of many cutting-edge technologies developed at Holland Bloorview and the Bloorview Research Institute (BRI) in the last few decades. In fact, BRI-led work has fuelled dozens of seminal innovations that have improved the quality of life for children and adults alike. Today, Holland Bloorview is among the top three research hospitals in Canada (small-tier) for both researcher and hospital intensity.

Dr. Shein founded Quillsoft in collaboration with Holland Bloorview in 2000 with the goal of levelling the educational playing field and ensuring equity and inclusion when it comes to students’ reading, writing and communication.

“We want to improve literacy rates to give people a leg up in society,” says Dr. Shein. “This includes everyone from people with physical disabilities and learning disabilities to those learning English as a second language. People need to read and make sense of what they’re reading in order to improve their outcomes in life – and that’s what our software does, customized for each person’s abilities.”

Importantly, Quillsoft has always been rooted in the desire to help people, a passion forged by founding team members who spent years at Holland Bloorview.

“The families who we met, and our experience there, has really driven our focus,” says Dr. Shein. “I was fortunate to be given consistent opportunities to try to innovate – and seeing the kids, their smiles, their personalities… I decided that if I can help them, then I will.” 

Dr. Shein remains in touch with many early users of his software as they have grown older, and he considers them friends. Some have used Quillsoft software to get their PhDs. Today, there are more than 2 million users of the WordQ software.

That includes Janine’s daughter, Aviva.

“Like most of us, Aviva is most engaged when things are meaningful to her,” says Janine. “Penmanship doesn’t equal intelligence – and WordQ has helped her express herself through her writing in a truly meaningful way.”

A Walk with Friends

We saw wild flowers. We also saw a Great Blue Heron. We saw a Red-winged blackbird so close to us that we could almost touch it. My friend also likes bird watching.