iPad case for toddlers that hides the home button?

My 18 month old son loves to interact with my iPad. I have explored some apps that I would think he would enjoy, but he finds it hard to resist the device's home button. (Perhaps because this is the most obvious way to interact with the device that always yields some kind of visible result.) He hits the home button almost compulsively.

Are there any solutions to this problem?

Ideally, it would be nice to buy some kind of a slip-case for kids that was specifically designed to hide the home button. I have seen some child-proof cases on the market, but they all appear to be geared towards protecting the device from the destructive forces of the child, or for making the device easy for the child to grip.

None of them appear to offer a solution to the home button, and this is unfortunate because I can imagine him interacting with something educational without that distraction.

Is there an off-the-shelf case out there that I have overlooked?

If not, does anybody have any thoughts about any other off-the-shelf cases that could be modified/hacked into hiding the home button?

Solution 1:

We've made a case that serves this purpose at AddyCase:

Let us know what you think!

Solution 2:

Can you put the iPad in the case upside-down?

I don't mean with the screen facing in the other direction, but with the device rotated 180 degrees. on the plane of the screen.

This should make the home button inaccessible, though it may also obscure the volume, rotation lock, and power buttons (which may be desirable as well).

Solution 3:

While I didn't find a case that solves this, I did see some stiff adhesive covers called "BubCaps" designed for exactly this problem. They claim that the material is too stiff for a toddler to activate, but just pliable enough that an adult can activate the button with some force.

I'm tempted to pair the BubCaps with a very grippable silicone case.

Edit: What the heck...I've ordered myself some BubCaps and a case to try out. I plan to leave the bounty open for other ideas in the meantime, though.

Solution 4:

Apple finally announced this as a feature in iOS 6, you can disable the hardware buttons and even parts of the screen!

"We were surprised at how many kids with autism have been using the phones, but there are controls in apps that you don't want them hitting." You can now select parts of apps to disable.

Please note that iOS will not work on the iPad 1, but only on iPad 2 3 and beyond.