Home / Guides / Page 2
All guides A-Z
240 guides across 20 corners. Each one opens with a routine card: the situation it is for, the system it builds, what you need and the first step. Page 2 of 6, guides 42 to 82.
Corner 15 - Holidays and travel Coming Home: The Re-Entry Day The trip is not over at the front door: a gentle re-entry day, bags unpacked in a set order, home routines restored one anchor at a time, and school only after a normal night. Corner 04 - Homework systems Communicating With Teachers About Homework Load When homework regularly takes too long or causes distress, tell school early, briefly and with facts. A two-week log, a short message and a joint plan work best. Corner 09 - Time and timers Countdown Calendars for Events and Holidays For waits longer than a day, a strip of days crossed off each morning makes a distant event visibly approach - and gives how many sleeps a shared, calm answer. Corner 10 - Transitions and warnings Countdowns for Big Changes: Moving House and New Siblings Big changes need a long, gentle runway: a countdown with preparation jobs a child can do, photographs of the new, and a clear list of everything that stays the same. Corner 17 - Teens and growing independence Curfews and Check-Ins: Agreements for Teen Evenings Agree evening times, check-in messages and get-home plans with your teenager, written down and reviewed as they grow, so nights out stay calm for everyone. Corner 15 - Holidays and travel Days Out: Exit Plans and Quiet Corners Enjoying busy places without getting trapped in them: scout the quiet spots first, agree a meeting point and an exit plan, and leave while the day is still good. Corner 02 - Morning routines Dressing Without the Daily Battle How to end the morning clothing battle by moving choices to the evening, shrinking the wardrobe to what works, and laying out a complete outfit where dressing happens. Corner 07 - School support in the UK: EHCP and SEND EHC Needs Assessments: How the Process Generally Works How an EHC needs assessment generally runs in England: who can request one, what the local authority gathers, the stages and timescales, and what happens at the end. Corner 01 - Executive function at home Emotional Weather and Executive Function How tiredness, hunger, excitement and worry shrink the capacity a child has for remembering, waiting and shifting, and how families plan the day around the weather rather than against it. Corner 11 - Emotional weather at home Emotional Weather at Home: A Parent's Calm Toolkit A parent-side toolkit for hot moments at home: pausing before you speak, lowering the temperature with voice and space, naming feelings plainly, and repairing afterwards so evenings can end kindly. Corner 16 - Clubs, sport and activities End-of-Season Reviews With Your Child A short, kind review at the end of each season turns activities into decisions: what was enjoyed, what was hard, what to keep, change or stop, decided with your child rather than around them. Corner 03 - Evening and bedtime routines Evening and Bedtime Routines That Wind the Day Down A complete evening system for families: a calm landing when you get home, a clear order for dinner, bath and screens, and a short bedtime sequence that ends the day kindly. Corner 17 - Teens and growing independence Exams and Revision: A Parent Support Role Support exams without taking over revision: a teenager-owned timetable, a calm home routine, protected sleep and food, and a parent role focused on conditions, not content. Corner 01 - Executive function at home Executive Function at Home: A Plain Guide for Parents A plain guide to executive function at home: what holding instructions, feeling time, starting, pausing and shifting look like at the kitchen table, and the household systems that quietly support each one. Corner 12 - Siblings and family fairness Explaining ADHD to Siblings in Plain Words How to explain to siblings, in plain everyday words, why a brother or sister needs more help with starting, stopping, waiting and remembering, and how to answer follow-up questions honestly over time. Corner 11 - Emotional weather at home Family Ground Rules, Written Down in Calm Times Writing two or three family ground rules together when everyone is calm: how to choose them, word them positively, display them, and review them without turning them into a wall of laws. Corner 12 - Siblings and family fairness Family Jobs at Different Levels Giving every child real household jobs matched to their level: why contribution matters for fairness, how to size and support jobs differently, and reviewing the list as children grow. Corner 18 - Parent stamina Finding Your People: Parent Groups and Communities Find parents who understand family life like yours: local groups, school networks and online communities run by recognised organisations, tried gently and left freely if they do not fit. Corner 01 - Executive function at home Flexible Thinking: When Plans Change Mid-Stream Why a changed plan can feel so large to a child who was holding the original plan tightly, and how Plan B scripts, early warnings and small practised changes make shifts easier to bear. Corner 18 - Parent stamina Friendships and a Life Outside the System Keep friendships and interests alive in small, realistic ways: regular low-effort contact, one protected activity, and friends who know the shape of your life. Corner 16 - Clubs, sport and activities Friendships Through Activities Shared interest is the easiest friendship soil there is: choosing groups where your child meets the same children weekly, helping connections along gently, and handling it when friendships wobble. Corner 01 - Executive function at home From Prompts to Independence: Fading Support Gradually How to step support back in small, planned stages - from doing alongside, to pointing, to a check at the end - so independence grows without the cliff edge of support suddenly vanishing. Corner 10 - Transitions and warnings From Screen to Table: The Hardest Switch of the Day Screens end mid-flow while meals are ready at a fixed time: how choosing the stopping unit in advance, warning at a natural break and giving the table a first job bridges the gap. Corner 13 - Screens and gaming agreements Gaming With Friends: Online Play Ground Rules at Home Household ground rules for playing games online with friends: who they play with, where headsets live, start times that fit, and what to do when chat gets unkind. Corner 11 - Emotional weather at home Grandparents and Other Adults: One Calm Script for Everyone How to agree one short, shared calm script with grandparents, partners and other regular carers: what to share, how to share it kindly, and what to do when approaches differ on the day. Corner 12 - Siblings and family fairness Grandparents, Cousins and Fairness at Family Events Handling fairness at birthdays, holidays and family gatherings: briefing grandparents kindly in advance, treats and attention that include everyone, and exit plans when an event gets too much. Corner 17 - Teens and growing independence Handing Over Appointments and Paperwork Gradually Pass appointment and paperwork tasks to your teenager in organisational stages: a shared folder, reminders they set, and letters they open, track and file with you nearby. Corner 17 - Teens and growing independence Handing Over the Morning: Teen Wake-Up Systems Pass the morning alarm to your teenager in stages: a wake-up system they choose, a back-up you both agree, and a review that keeps school mornings calm. Corner 15 - Holidays and travel Holidays and Travel With a Child Who Needs Routine The pillar guide to family trips away from home: prepare in small steps, carry a few familiar anchors with you, set up a base on arrival, and leave a gentle day for coming home. Corner 09 - Time and timers Homework Bursts and Break Timers Short timed work bursts with real, timed breaks between them: how to size the bursts from a trial, write the sequence on a card, and keep breaks from stretching. Corner 04 - Homework systems Homework for Young Children: Ten Minutes Well Spent Homework for young children is short: reading, a few spellings or sums. Ten focused minutes at a set time, ending while it is still going well, builds the habit for later years. Corner 17 - Teens and growing independence Homework in Secondary School: Stepping Back Slowly Move from sitting beside homework to being available nearby: a teenager-owned planner, a regular start time, and a parent role that shrinks in planned stages. Corner 13 - Screens and gaming agreements Homework Screens and Play Screens: Keeping Them Apart Separating homework screens from play screens with places, profiles and order of the afternoon, so schoolwork does not dissolve into videos and games. Corner 04 - Homework systems Homework Systems That End the Evening Battle Homework becomes manageable when it has a place, a start ritual, a chunking habit and a timer. The full system, from the first five minutes to the Friday folder reset. Corner 15 - Holidays and travel Hotel Rooms and Holiday Lets: Setting Up a Base The first half hour in a new room decides how the stay feels: unpack in a set order, build the sleeping corner first, place belongings where your child expects them, and agree the room rules. Corner 06 - School plans in the US: Section 504 and IEPs IEPs: What an Individualized Education Program Covers A plain explainer of IEPs in US public schools: the law behind them, the parts a written IEP generally contains, annual goals and progress reporting, and the team's recurring review cycle. Corner 19 - Questions to ask professionals Keeping a Professionals Notebook: Who Said What, When How to keep a running professionals notebook: a people page, dated meeting pages, a letters log and an actions tracker, so the story of your child's support stays findable in one place. Corner 05 - Talking to school Keeping a Simple School Log at Home A five-minute home log for school life: what to write down, what to leave out, and how dated notes turn vague worries into clear patterns you can share with school. Corner 07 - School support in the UK: EHCP and SEND Keeping Records Through the Review Year A light, steady record system for the SEND year: one folder, a timeline of dates, meeting notes and letter habits that make reviews and conversations calmer. Corner 15 - Holidays and travel Keeping Some Routines on Holiday You cannot keep every routine on holiday, and you do not need to: choose the two or three anchors that carry your child's day, keep those steady, and let the rest flex without guilt. Corner 16 - Clubs, sport and activities Kit Bags and Club-Day Systems The machinery that keeps a club alive week after week: one bag with a home, a pack-the-night-before rule, a wash-and-return loop, and a club-day shape for food, travel and homework.