Author: Sinclair, Norah M

Mr. Sands, Supermarket assistant with Down syndrome
Mr. Sands has worked for the past year bagging groceries for customers at a supermarket. He has Down syndrome and has difficulty with abstract concepts, reading, and doing mathematical calculations.
More about Mr. Sands
Mr. Sands usually buys his groceries at the supermarket where he works because he is familiar with it. He sometimes becomes confused because there are so many product choices, and he finds it difficult to keep track of how much he is spending. He has difficulty re-learning where his favorite products are each time the supermarket changes the layout of its products.
Recently, he downloaded an app on his mobile phone for an online grocery store. He explored the app the first few times with a friend. He found that he could use the app without much difficulty because of clearly indicated items and easy to understand information and instructions in simple language. The navigation was consistent and easy to use. The app also provided a search functionality that helped him find items when the navigation did not show them immediately.
His friend also showed him accessibility features on his mobile phone that help him complete the order and checkout forms. These functions include word prediction which highlights a selection of possible words based on the first few characters that he can quickly select. Mr. Sands uses this feature frequently when he is entering text, for example when he is writing comments and product reviews. He is happy that the app provides an opportunity for him to review and correct entries before they are sent.
The app also offers an option that lets him select from a list of products that he has ordered in the past or that he chose as his favorites. Once he decides what he wants to buy, he selects the item and puts it into his virtual shopping basket. The app gives him an updated total each time he adds an item, helping him make sure that he does not overspend his budget.
Mr. Sands now shops on the online grocery store a few times a month, and just buys a few fresh items each day at the supermarket where he works. He is one of the many happy customers of this usable app.
Draft revisions
Stephen, Supermarket assistant with Down syndrome

Stephen has Down syndrome and has difficulty with abstract concepts, reading, and math calculations. 

Stephen works at a market, bagging groceries for customers. Typically he buys his groceries at the same market where he works, but he is sometimes confused by the large number of product choices and sometimes has problems finding his favorite items when the store layout is changed. 

Recently, a friend showed him an app for online grocery purchases that has consistent, easy-to-use navigation with clear and direct instructions. Stephen is able to add the list of his most frequently purchased items into the app and save it for additional purchases. He also likes the search functionality that makes suggestions for mistyped or misspelled words. The app also keeps a running total of the items in his virtual shopping cart which helps him keep up with how much he is spending.

His friend also showed him several accessibility features in his mobile phone that he finds very helpful including word prediction which provides a selection of possible word choices based on the first characters he enters and the speak selection which allows him to listen to reviews posted by other users on the grocery app. With the use of these tools, Stephen has begun posting his own reviews of items he has purchased.

Stephen now uses the shopping app a couple of times a month for frequently purchased items and buys a few fresh items regularly from the store where he works.

For more information on implementing techniques that remove barriers for Stephen, see the following resources:

Diversity of web users:
•	Down syndrome (Cognitive disabilities)
Diversity in web use:
•	Easy-to-read text (Presentation)
•	Pop-up and animations blockers (Presentation)
•	Progressive disclosure (Presentation)
•	Reading assistants (Presentation)
•	Reduced interface (Presentation)
•	Accelerators (Input)
•	Spelling and grammar tools (Input)
•	Consistency and predictability (Interaction)
•	Descriptive titles, headings, and labels (Interaction)
•	Helpful error and success messages (Interaction)
•	Multiple navigation mechanisms (Interaction)