Spark! Emotion Garden
Interaction Designer
4 weeks
ios & Apple Watch Concept Framework
Spark! Emotion Garden
Interaction Designer
Interaction Designer
4 weeks
4 weeks
ios & Apple Watch Concept Framework
ios & Apple Watch Concept Framework
mood selection
growth
notification
mood selection
growth
notification
overview
The Spark! Emotion Garden is an Ios Wearable ecosystem created for the playful, authentic, and engaging encouragement of emotional regulation and reflection , behavioral development, as well as independent growth. Based on research by Franceli Cibrian Ph.D.1 for the Joan Ganz Sesame Workshop fellowship, Spark! is a continued design exploration of what it means to design wearables for neurodivergent early-childhood development.
research
the problem !
the problem !
As a part of our larger continued investigation on Cool Craig, the Spark! Research project build off early-childhood research to develop a Habit and Emotion Tracking Ubiquitous ecosystem that allows for promoted autonomy, dignity, and fun for our younger users.
As a part of our larger continued investigation on Cool Craig, the Spark! Research project build off early-childhood research to develop a Habit and Emotion Tracking Ubiquitous ecosystem that allows for promoted autonomy, dignity, and fun for our younger users.
👧🏽 = 😥
👩🏽 = 🤔
👎😵💫❌
👧🏽 = 😥
👩🏽 = 🤔
👎😵💫❌
social context
context
context
👧🏽 = 😥 -> 👧🏽 ⭐️⌚️
⌚️ 💌📱
👩🏽📱-> 👩🏽🫡 -> 👩🏽💞👧🏽
👍🏽😁⭐️
👧🏽 = 😥 -> 👧🏽 ⭐️⌚️
⌚️ 💌📱
👩🏽📱-> 👩🏽🫡 -> 👩🏽💞👧🏽
👍🏽😁⭐️
Children with ADHD often struggle to stay motivated with traditional behavior tracking methods, traditional habit-building tools often fail neurodiverse children because they require levels of sustained attention and intrinsic motivation that is more challenging for these audiences.
At the same time…
caregivers are often caught between the need for oversight and a way to encourage and monitor progress without being intrusive, or becoming a source of “nagging” or friction.
Children with ADHD often struggle to stay motivated with traditional behavior tracking methods, traditional habit-building tools often fail neurodiverse children because they require levels of sustained attention and intrinsic motivation that is more challenging for these audiences.
At the same time…
caregivers are often caught between the need for oversight and a way to encourage and monitor progress without being intrusive, or becoming a source of “nagging” or friction.
HOW MIGHT WE . . .
HOW MIGHT WE . . .
Create a Collaborative digital ecosystem for neurodiverse learners and their caregivers that fosters emotional regulation and behavioral growth in an engaging, supportive, and unobtrusive way?
revisiting, reimaginging, and rediscovering
revisiting, reimaginging, and rediscovering
We reimagined everyday emotional tracking and task completion as playful, rewarding experiences. By logging emotions and completing real-world tasks, children earn in-game rewards that provide tangible validation and motivation.
We reimagined everyday emotional tracking and task completion as playful, rewarding experiences. By logging emotions and completing real-world tasks, children earn in-game rewards that provide tangible validation and motivation.
At the same time- we revisited different ways to deliver meaningful data, metrics, and insights- discovering ways to assist caregivers in monitoring progress and painpoints for their children.
At the same time- we revisited different ways to deliver meaningful data, metrics, and insights- discovering ways to assist caregivers in monitoring progress and painpoints for their children.
my role
I worked as lead Concept and Interaction Designer, developing frameworks for wearable and ios interactions, developing for delight in the user journey. With a focus on the child's experience.
I worked as lead Concept and Interaction Designer, developing frameworks for wearable and ios interactions, developing for delight in the user journey. With a focus on the child's experience.
I led the translation of our prior research findings into simple, engaging, and responsive design solutions.
I led the translation of our prior research findings into simple, engaging, and responsive design solutions.
I was responsible for initial user journey design, identifying interaction touchpoints, design cues, and finalizing ui prototypes for our initial user testing.
I was responsible for initial user journey design, identifying interaction touchpoints, design cues, and finalizing ui prototypes for our initial user testing.
designing for delight
Designing for delight meant every decision — from typeface to tap feedback — had to earn its place. The goal wasn't just a usable product; it was one that children would want to return to, and caregivers could trust.
For Spark!, delight showed up in three ways: through motion that felt alive, visuals that felt warm, and interactions that felt rewarding. The sections below break down how each of those came to life.
Designing for delight meant every decision — from typeface to tap feedback — had to earn its place. The goal wasn't just a usable product; it was one that children would want to return to, and caregivers could trust.
For Spark!, delight showed up in three ways: through motion that felt alive, visuals that felt warm, and interactions that felt rewarding. The sections below break down how each of those came to life.
designing motion
motion for play; motion for fun
When it came to designing for Spark! and our target user- children- I reflected a lot on the sentiments I associated, and admired in childhood.
In other words- what was I loving as a kid ?! What were mini-daisy and all her mini friends up to ?!
I wanted to design interactions that resonated "play*, and for that- I went into my roots and thought most about what it looked like to portray playfulness, joy, and fun.
motion for play; motion for fun
When it came to designing for Spark! and our target user- children- I reflected a lot on the sentiments I associated, and admired in childhood.
In other words- what was I loving as a kid ?! What were mini-daisy and all her mini friends up to ?!
I wanted to design interactions that resonated "play*, and for that- I went into my roots and thought most about what it looked like to portray playfulness, joy, and fun.
expressions of enthusiasm, and encouraging engagement - Word World, Super Mario and the power of bounce.
expressions of enthusiasm, and encouraging engagement - Word World, Super Mario and the power of bounce.
Word World is bouncy, joyful, educational and engaging and it's entirely intentional. When designing motion as a tool for engagement, I drew from the media that shaped my own childhood.
Word World is bouncy, joyful, educational and engaging and it's entirely intentional. When designing motion as a tool for engagement, I drew from the media that shaped my own childhood.
Some of the first things to come to mind were Childrens Television, and Video Games. Word World's characters literally spring with enthusiasm, leaping out from the squish-squashing of letters. Video game transitions ad micro animations like Super Mario cutscene transitions, and sprite animations all use exaggerated bounce to signal reward and momentum without taking themselves too seriously.
Some of the first things to come to mind were Childrens Television, and Video Games. Word World's characters literally spring with enthusiasm, leaping out from the squish-squashing of letters. Video game transitions ad micro animations like Super Mario cutscene transitions, and sprite animations all use exaggerated bounce to signal reward and momentum without taking themselves too seriously.
As you slide through take note of Duck's transformation. Anything lookin squish squashy and particularly bouncy to you?
As you slide through take note of Duck's transformation. Anything lookin squish squashy and particularly bouncy to you?
This informed a core design principle for Spark!: motion = emotion.
Bouncy, springy transitions signal delight and progress.
For wearables especially, where screen real estate is tiny, motion becomes the primary expressive layer.
A gentle pulse on the Apple Watch, a blooming flower animation on iOS. These micro-moments make the experience feel alive rather than clinical.
This informed a core design principle for Spark!: motion = emotion.
Bouncy, springy transitions signal delight and progress.
For wearables especially, where screen real estate is tiny, motion becomes the primary expressive layer.
A gentle pulse on the Apple Watch, a blooming flower animation on iOS. These micro-moments make the experience feel alive rather than clinical.
ii. Visual Design
Color Palette - Spark! Emotion Garden
Color Palette - Spark! Emotion Garden
Our visual direction was anchored in warmth, whimsy, and soft naturalism. We pulled references from children's media, indie game aesthetics, and garden/nature illustration styles — favoring rounded forms, saturated but muted palettes, and organic textures over sharp or sterile UI patterns.
Our visual direction was anchored in warmth, whimsy, and soft naturalism. We pulled references from children's media, indie game aesthetics, and garden/nature illustration styles — favoring rounded forms, saturated but muted palettes, and organic textures over sharp or sterile UI patterns.
Seed
#3A3A3A
Body text
Cloud
#F9F5F0
Backgroud/
Base
Angry
#FF7F7F
Frustrated/
Mad
Worried
#C3B1E1
Anxious/
Scared
Sad
#A0C4FF
Upset/
Tired
Annoyed
#FF9EB5
Annoyed/
Irritated
Joy
#FFD670
Excited/
Proud
Calm
#A8E6CF
Relaxed/
Happy
Typography - Spark! Emotion Garden
Aa
Aa
Typeface — Poppins
heading 1 , semibold
heading 2, medium
body, regular
Typeface — Poppins
heading 1 , semibold
heading 2, medium
body, regular
Poppins was chosen as our typeface for its friendly, geometric roundness — approachable without being babyish, which respected our users' sense of autonomy. UI inspiration leaned into cartoonish illustration, soft gradients, and living, responsive elements (plants that grow, petals that bloom) to make emotional tracking feel rewarding rather than clinical.
User flows & wireframes
Early wireframes mapped the child's iOS + Apple Watch loop :
log emotion → complete task → earn garden reward
I focused on designing the child's journey — mapping the emotion check-in, garden growth screen, and the reward loop connecting them.
Early wireframes mapped the child's iOS + Apple Watch loop :
log emotion → complete task → earn garden reward
I focused on designing the child's journey — mapping the emotion check-in, garden growth screen, and the reward loop connecting them.
Deliverables
animated interactions
animated interactions
hover to preview animations!
animations designed with Jitter, prototype built in Framer
app menu prototype screens
ios prototype sneak peek
ios prototype in XCode
©daisy fernandez-reyes 2026
last updated april.2026
made with love and some more fun stuff