KiddyCharts

02/10/2024

Check out our Halloween resources - including this fantastic colouring book!

https://www.kiddycharts.com/seasonal-and-holiday-ideas/halloween/

15/07/2024

What a fantastic idea 💕 for my followers in the UK.

MORRISONS CAFES OFFERING FREE KELLOGG’S CEREAL WITH MILK AND A PIECE OF FRUIT EVERY DAY UNTIL AUGUST 4TH 2024 - NO OTHER PURCHASE REQUIRED

This is available in every one of their 398 cafés, one per customer, per day. You can choose a bowl of Corn Flakes, Rice Krispies or Coco Pops, with a choice of dairy and non-dairy milk. You can also pick up a banana, apple, pear or orange.

Just ask for a ‘Kellogg’s Breakfast’ at the till.

15/07/2024

Come join us for amazing book activities and recommendations for kids to support their wellbeing - for free!

Discover the perfect books for kids to boost their wellbeing! Sign up now to receive personalized recommendations. 📚✨

22/05/2024

Just seen this.

This is theoretically cool and practically a disaster. My son and daughter would have last five mins in here 😂

And would have likely been crawling around in laps, trying to climb over it or chatting to me constantly.

I wouldn’t have minded though - impossible to work with kids that close methinks!

What a fantastic idea! These are made by furniture company TMC and in Fairfield Area Library in Herico County, Virginia 📚

Photo: Chris Cunningham

16/05/2024

I love this Eckyo - saw it on another page and its important to me to find the originator for these wonderful illustrations if I can.

I think perhaps why I like this so much is that I make a lot of mistakes.

And yet somehow I keep moving, and that's kind of the message.

It doesn't help to get knocked back by them - let's drive on and learn from them where we can.

Our confidence comes from within.

15/05/2024

We need your help with our next awesome thing!

Its been a bit of a nightmare for some bloggers and site owners after Google has focused on using AI to answer questions directly in their search engine. Removing a lot of the need to go to sites. Some blogger traffic has dropped hugely, causing massive loss in earnings. From $1000s overnight to virtually nothing.

I suspected that this might come, so have been trying to pivot - trying to think of other ways to get people to come to KiddyCharts so we didn't just die on our arse. 🍑

This is one of those things.

I'd love feedback on it as its in BETA. Any thoughts welcome from anyone, about anything. It's all about giving awesome things to awesome kids, teachers and families for free!

Discover a variety of certificates for kids to celebrate their achievements and milestones. Perfect for rewarding and motivating today!

03/05/2024

This product looks amazing. But it isn't that reason I am sharing this.

It is Paddy McGuinness who is an utter legend. Look at Max's face. He's a 💫.

Be more Paddy.

Be more Max too.

01/05/2024

This fantastic giveaway is closing on the site tomorrow - come on in and win a Bobbin Bicycles worth £199!

🌟 Enter now for a chance to win a stunning pink Gingersnap Bobbin Bike valued at £199.99! 🚲 Don't miss out on this fabulous opportunity!

25/04/2024

I get what is being done here. We need to focus on the neutral, and for lots and lots of reasons.

For example, couching the language so positive that it belies the struggles that others experience isn't doing anyone any favours. ADHD Superpowers grates me as an ADHDer because yes there are some positives, but there are also negatives and we can't ignore the challenges that myself, and others go through. It isn't all a bed of roses for any of us.

The same is true for Schizophrenia (which my brother has) - none of the positives apply to him, and I think if he was well enough at the moment, he'd be very mad at all of those terms. I guess they don't apply to all neurodivergent conditions of course.

And the "next step in human evolution" makes me think of superiority, and that can never be a good thing. We are all uniquely different whether NT or ND, and so we all accept and support each other.

No one is better. No one is less.

We are all human, and awesome in our uniqueness and we are accepted as we are, however we present. Some need support to thrive, and some less so.

Edit: PLEASE READ THE ENTIRE POST AND/OR COMMENTS BEFORE JUMPING TO THE WORST POSSIBLE CONCLUSIONS. Comments are now limited because of how many people are not doing this.

Autism as a concept has lived in the pathology paradigm from the very beginning. That’s about a hundred years of seeing Autistic people as “broken” and in need of fixing. It is officially diagnosed as a “disorder,” and the diagnostic criteria are full of pathologizing language. So for most of society, negative language and attitudes around autism are “normal.”

To someone in the medical or mental health field, pathologizing language is also “normal.” Same goes for people in education, particularly special education. It’s just how they talk about patients and students, they don’t mean anything by it, you HAVE to talk about a person’s deficits/symptoms in order to get them help. It’s just…normal.

But sometimes, when something negative is normalized enough, people can mistake it for being “neutral.” Which leads to people arguing that the word “disorder” is neutral, and that the actually neutral language of neurodiversity is “overly positive.”

This is all incorrect, though. The word “disorder” is not and was never intended to be neutral. The language used to diagnose autism as a medical/mental health condition is not and never has been neutral. And “normalized” is not the same as “neutral.”

And so, here’s a handy dandy (and slightly snarky) graphic for anyone out there whose frame of reference could use some re-centering.

NOTE: I’m not endorsing the things in the “positive” column anymore than I am the “negative” column (except maybe diagnostic dance partner, because it’s just fun). I’m pro-neutrality. It is strictly to demonstrate the difference between neutral and positive language, and it is meant tongue-in-cheek. Toxic positivity and supremacy don’t help anyone either.

ALSO NOTE: Genuine questions are fine. Attempts to argue that pathologizing medical language is neutral OR that autism is a disorder are not. If you are uncomfortable in the realization that the language you’ve been using contributes to negative attitudes towards Autistic people, that’s a sign that you have some stuff to learn, not an invitation to get defensive in my comments section.

ALSO ALSO NOTE: Nowhere have I told anyone how to refer to or think of *themselves,* so don’t come at me with that one either.

[Image description: Infographic by Autball entitled: IS THAT REALLY NEUTRAL, OR ARE YOU JUST USED TO IT?

The first column (over a red background) is headed by black text that reads: So normalized that people *think* they’re neutral but actually NEGATIVE TERMS. This is followed by a list of terms: disorder; deficit; dysfunction; symptom; co-morbidity.

The second column (over a yellow background) is headed by black text that reads: Normalized negativity makes people *think* they’re positive but actually NEUTRAL TERMS. This is followed by a list of terms: natural variation; difference; neurodivergence; trait; co-occurring condition.

The third column (over a green background) is headed by black text that reads: Sometimes unnecessarily so but actually POSITIVE TERMS. This is followed by a list of terms: the next step in human evolution; gift; sunshine and rainbows; superpower; diagnostic dance partner.]

22/04/2024

We've got the best St george's Day activity book for you and it is FREE:

There simply isn't enough fun stuff on St George's day for kids, so we have redressed the balance with these St George's Day printables

11/04/2024

Check our our latest free coloring onsite:

Get inspired and unleash your creativity with our collection of printable and free motivational coloring pages! Enter a world of colors & positivity as you enjoy filling these pages with vibrant hues.

05/04/2024

We are sorry that one of the most popular posts on our site got a bug - and the PDF wasn't available BUT we fixed it, so download our amazing and free Go Grow Glow food game for loads or fun with the kids!

https://www.kiddycharts.com/printables/go-grow-glow-printables/

Check out out Go Grow Glow printable and help your kids understand what foods they need to eat to give them a balanced diet.

01/04/2024

Really pleased to have been featured as an expert in this campaign to help understand lighting needs for those that experiences sensory input differently:

Experts share tips on how to create a neurodivergent-friendly home and the best lighting environment for neurodiverse children.

20/03/2024

I don't normally post work stuff on here - however I am proud to have made this for free for parents, homeschoolers, schools and everyone else that might like it.

Generate your own Bingo cards from nearly 60 themes, and use however you want! Focus on your kids interests to get them more engaged.

If we don't do something and you think its worth it, let me know and we can see what we can do. It's in Beta so I'd LOVE some ideas!

🎉 Excite your kids with custom Bingo cards — create them for free today! 🎲✨

15/03/2024

💕

So today one of my kids was having a day.

They were provoking the others endlessly, starting arguments, pushing buttons. I had to keep putting out fires and it was really impacting our day.

I spoke to them about it again and again.
It kept happening. Things kept escalating.

I was frustrated, they were frustrated.
It was not calm.

Eventually after another altercation I sort of yelled ‘why do you keep doing this?!’

And my kid said back to me ‘I’m just GRUMPY because I’m TIRED because I had a nightmare in the night and couldn’t get back to sleep! And I’m HOT.’

And I went OHHHHHH. RIIIIIGHT.

I shouldn’t have needed them to tell me.
I should have pieced things together from their behaviour (because it was out of the ordinary).

But I didn’t.
And I’m so glad that they could articulate what was going on with their body.

My kid did not have the capacity to do any better. Their mental capacity bar was already filled with fatigue, emotional overwhelm, and sensory dysregulation from overheating. They didn’t have any space left to deal with siblings or problems.

I got them out of their warm pjs immediately and the effect was almost instant. Being hot is this child’s biggest trigger.

They then went and played happily with the siblings for a solid hour.
They were still tired but they were coping with less stress, so they could better access all their skills (like cooperating, problem solving).

I learn almost every single day that regulation can’t be an afterthought.
It needs to happen first. And when things are hard, start with coregulation and go from there.

I know to go straight to the ‘why’ next time.
Because they had the reason ready to go.
And from there we could sort it out.

Em 🌈

This pic is from my resource ‘Autism is a dynamic disability’ on TPT.

14/03/2024

💕

Charlie Mackesy ❤️❤️
(Pinterest)

https://amzn.to/2O1aaDN
https://amzn.to/2O8lwWi

13/03/2024

Admittedly, this is the tip of the iceberg in raising awareness on supermarket anxiety, but its a start I guess:

Supermarket anxiety is a very real thing – here’s why it happens and how to deal with it

10/03/2024

Happy Mother’s Day to everyone.

My first without mine. I know she’s reading her favourite book out there with Dad though.

https://www.kiddycharts.com/seasonal-and-holiday-ideas/mothers-day/

06/03/2024

I love a bike - but white, for my kids - that'd last 2 minutes...

Anyone else?

Retrobike | Cool Kids Bike | Best Childrens Bike Your mini me cyclist is in for a ‘wheelie’ good time with the Banwood Classic Retrobike.This Retrobike is inspired by bicycles for adults and influenced by Scandinavian design, the Banwood Classic features a lightweight alloy frame in pink finish....

02/03/2024

This is spades. It’s important to show our kids that power doesn’t equal control. It feels as though somewhere along the line “good” parenting turned into being about controlling our kids because they are either afraid of what we might do, or worried how we might react or punish. Isn’t it better to help teach our kids the power of remaining calm in the face of difficult emotions and learning to collaborate together to work out a solution?

Not even sure I would call it a "victory".

By nature of our roles as parents and teachers, we have power. We can use that power to instill fear in our kids to get compliance, or we can SHARE that power to model mutual respect and collaboration, and still get things done.

Fearing authority is not a quality I want my kids to have.

We gain respect by modeling respect. Yes, we have to model respect to children.

01/03/2024

Our free book club has been featured in this fantastic article, as well as our colouring book. Why not pop over and take a look?

https://omgoodnews.com/2024/02/23/the-mum-tackling-the-stigma-of-thinking-differently/

The Essex mother of two who champions mental wellbeing and is training to be a counsellor created KiddyCharts, a website that makes learning fun for children of all abilities. When Helen Neale, 50,…

29/02/2024

Need something for Mothers Day? We have all the things, and most of them are totally free!

https://www.kiddycharts.com/seasonal-and-holiday-ideas/mothers-day/

25/02/2024

Sometimes my brain does this and sometimes it just won’t get on with it.

If only I could work out how to kick in that spite driven determination / ambition 😂

Anyone else?

I speculate that it depends at what state I’m in. Hyper or hypo arousal and there is no way. In that window of tolerance. God help us all 😂