When Shannon Des Roches Rosa purchased a raffle ticket, she had no idea how much it would change the life of her autistic son, Leo, but it did. That raffle ticket won the family a brand new iPad, a device that Des Roches Rosa said she hadn’t considered purchasing, but she is glad to have now. She explains that her son has difficulty with fine motor tasks, so doing things like writing are hard for him. The new iPad is helping him with that.

“After Leo spent five minutes with his iPad, I realized that any assumptions I had about it being merely a bigger or a more breakable iPod touch were idiotic,” writes Des Roches Rosa. “It’s a tough little device. And for Leo, the larger scale of the iPad makes everything he wants to interact with just the right size, and therefore totally accessible. He may have a hard time writing on paper or typing on a computer keyboard, but he is a world-class iPad swiper and tapper, and his excellent visual memory means he can use that swiping and tapping to navigate between apps and videos with precision.”

It took Leo one day to master the iPad interface and he hasn’t looked back, according to his mother. He is drawing, using spelling apps, and augmentative and alternative communication apps too. Of course, being a kid, Leo enjoys playing games and making music on the iPad as well.

“I don’t usually dabble in miracle-speak, but I may erect a tiny altar to Steve Jobs in the corner of our living room,” said Des Roches Rosa.