The Sign Read by Fingertips

Before the community festival, Hookhook made a map from tiny colored dots. Aunt Mali, a blind porcupine using a white cane, asked where the first-aid table was. Hookhook explained the colors, but Aunt Mali said plainly that fingertips could not use this map yet.

Hookhook added identical round beads at every stop. Aunt Mali felt them but could not distinguish the stage from first aid. They traveled the real route together. She requested a clear start, direction, junctions, and different destination shapes.

The team rebuilt the map. Raised cord marked paths; a star meant stage, a heart first aid, and a circle drinking water. A matching visual map placed every symbol identically. Large buttons played short audio cues without masking surrounding sound.

Aunt Mali tested from the entrance and followed the raised path to the first junction, but the heart sat too close to the star. Hookhook did not ask her to repeat a confusing design. The team spaced the shapes apart, added a stopping edge, and tested again.

At the festival, Aunt Mali chose the tactile route to reach first aid, with audio buttons available as another option. Hookhook used large shapes and strong contrast, and kept feedback cards beside the map for future users' experience.

Accessibility means co-designing and testing with users, then offering the same information in more than one form.