Understanding users is crucial to designing good products and technologies, and typically requires to use a variety of methods and almost always to use more than one method for any given project.

The IDEO Method Cards represent 51 different methods across four different areas (learn, look, ask, try) and help the designer to understand which methods might be useful in any given situation.

Consider the following design questions:

How can a mobile system help long-distance bicyclists to find restaurants and amenities?

How can a video game help educate kids in Grades 1-5 on healthy eating?

How can a new system support communication for emergency room nurses?

For each of the above design scenarios, choose 1 method from each of the four categories that would be appropriate to help understand the potential users and the design problem. For each method you list, write a short paragraph about why you think that given method would work in this situation given the potential users and the context of the problem. Write an additional paragraph summarizing any methods from the 51 Method Cards you think would not work for each design question. Provide good justification for each.