'Agricultural specialisterne': rural employment revolution for those with Autism

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Robert Mayben, a special education teacher from Sonora, California, is the inventor of the Desktop Desk.

The Desktop Desk provides disabled individuals the ability to access and actively participate more equally in many of life’s everyday activities. The lightweight, portable product operates similarly to a dry erase board, with users manipulating markers and erasers, and utilising any standard countertop cleaner for cleaning.

Given the problems with fine motor skills and handwriting that many people with Autism Spectrum Disorders have, a key advantage of the Desktop Desk for these individuals would seem to be improved hand control…

…Simply, the Desktop Desk eliminates the need for propping up a work desk, dining table or other surface on 2x4 planks or red bricks. The improved angle and the ability to get closer to the writing surface provided by Mayben’s product made a real difference in improved hand control…

The Desktop Desk is not made especially for Autism Spectrum Disorders but here is an example of how one success story of its use for someone on the Spectrum…

…And then one [Desktop Desk] was built for an autistic boy who was struggling to keep focused. The desktop desk became part of his routine when he walked in my class. He was able to set it up, place his activity sheet on it, and when he tilted it to a comfortable working position he was able to work with less visual distraction. This equaled less classroom behavior management for me and more academic time for him…

Finally, Robert Mayben operates a sponsorship program to ensure that his product gets into the lives of those who most need it…

…In the past two years, Mayben has sold several hundred Desktop Desks to parents, schools, adult learning centers and other organizations.
He also has developed a sponsorship program, through which Rotary, Lions and Kiwanis clubs, as well as businesses and veterans’ groups, have purchased Desktop Desks to donate to local schools and centers that work with people with disabilities…

(sources: Independence Today; Your Therapy Source - www.YourTherapySource.com: New Desk for Individuals with Physical Disabilities; Home - Quest | Muscular Dystrophy Association)