‘Mornings in our house were a battle. Leo cried over his socks, over breakfast, over his school bag, and I got to work already exhausted. One evening I printed the morning routine, laminated it and stuck it to the wardrobe with Velcro: wake up, toilet, breakfast, get dressed, school bag. For the first few days we looked at it together. On the Monday of the second week I found him in his room already dressed, with his finger on the last card. All he said was: "Mummy, bag". I locked myself in the bathroom and cried, but out of relief.»
🌷Sarahmum of Leo, 5 · Watford
«Every September I spent two weekends finding pictures, adapting them and cutting them out for the children I support. This year I picked the topics on Sunday evening and on Monday the cards were already on the desk. What I didn't expect: Jack, who never asked for anything in class, picked up the "water" card and brought it to me. It was the first time he'd asked me for something on his own. I've kept it in my diary.»
📚EmmaSEN teaching assistant · Leeds
«At nursery, changeover time was chaos: twelve children, two practitioners and nobody wanting to leave the toys. I hung up the sequence "play, toilet, hands, snack" at their eye level. After a week they were the ones pointing it out to the others. One mum saw it and asked me to make her one for home with her daughter's photo. I made it in one evening.»
🧸Lauranursery practitioner · Bristol
«I'm not good with computers and I was worried I wouldn't understand any of it. My daughter showed me once: open, choose, print. On Tuesdays and Thursdays I look after my grandson, who can't say what's wrong when he gets cross. Now we get the emotion cards out and he brings me the little face card. The other day he gave me "sad" and then gave me a cuddle. We had a snack and he was fine.»
🧶Margaretgran, 66 · Norwich
«I teach Year 1. I printed the communication boards for the whole class, not just for the children who needed them, and the atmosphere changed: less shouting, more fingers pointing at pictures. Within a fortnight they were the ones repeating the class rules themselves.»
✏️Rachelprimary school teacher · Manchester
«I started for my daughter, then the mums at nursery saw her visual timetable on her pushchair and asked me for one. Now on Saturday mornings I print, laminate and put together two or three kits with the child's name and photo. It's not a job, it's my little corner of the week, and it pays for itself.»
🎀Hannahmum and kit maker · York
