I am working on an children’s interactive picture book, Mabell’s Zoo. The target audience is 2-5 years old. Luckily I have a test subject in the house and she is not afraid to tell me what she thinks.

She has told me the color of particular animals is wrong and some animals looked sad or mad. I watch her and if movement is confusing, she uses two hands in a swirling motion, since faster must make it work better. And when the accelerometer moved things that she did not touch, she really got stern.

At this age, my daughter is learning cause and effect and control. What seemed like a fun feature that would lend itself beautifully to movement turned out to be frustrating for the user. The target audience rules and I turned off the accelerometer.

When I demo the application to adults, one of the first things they try is tilting the tablet. I then get the disappointed look. Maybe I can sneak in the accelerometer for “special effects” to please the older crowd.

It is a wonderful feeling when my daughter giggles over something I have created. I wonder if she thinks all Moms make things like this for their kids?