Object details
| Designer / Studio | Jinyang Zhou |
| University | Politecnico di Milano |
| Age range | 7 to 10 years |
| Award | EPDA 2026 Top Design, Conceptual / Educational Product Design (Student) |
| Explore the design | Project video |
Fast-paced digital stimuli are often blamed for shrinking children’s attention spans. Fewer designs try to rebuild that attention through play.
Melody Adventurer, by Jinyang Zhou at Politecnico di Milano, is one of them. The educational product for children aged seven to ten received a Top Design distinction in the 2026 European Product Design Award student programme.
It draws on behavioural therapy to cultivate focus, self-regulation and delayed gratification. The vehicle is an immersive, story-driven experience combining music, narrative and hands-on interaction.
At key moments in the story, children assemble tracks and place musical keys according to a score. A ball then rolls along the track, playing the melody and checking whether the sequence is right.
Only when it is correct does the story move on. Waiting, checking and trying again become part of the fun.
Melody Adventurer turns patience into a reward rather than a rule, and builds a routine children want to repeat.
View Melody Adventurer on the European Product Design Award winner’s page →
Image: Jinyang Zhou.
