Description
Back-to-School Toolkit
£62.00 – £72.00
During the holidays, Tom was anxious about going back to school. Due to his communication difficulties, he struggled to find the words to tell me how he was feeling but I knew from his angry outbursts, repetitive questions, and frequent meltdowns that he was nervous about returning to school.
I was dreading the return of the school morning challenge – getting everyone out of the door on time dressed, fed, clean, and with all the right kit. I was fed up with being a shouty mum.
Using visual supports made our lives much easier and going back to school much less stressful for all our family. Here’s what we used to help us:
- Pictures of faces showing different emotions to help Tom quickly and easily communicate to me how he felt about going to school. This meant I understood how he was feeling and enabled me to reassure him and help him feel better.
- Pictures showing Tom’s morning and evening routine to help him understand what he needed to do without me constantly nagging him. This led to a calmer and less chaotic start and end to the day.
- A packing checklist attached to Tom’s school bag to remind him what to pack so he didn’t worry about forgotten things.
- A visual timetable so Tom could easily see the structure of his school day so that he didn’t have to constantly ask his teacher what he was supposed to be doing next.
Knowing what to expect during his day helped to reduce Tom’s anxiety levels, frustrations, and meltdowns. Being able to organise himself, use his school timetable, and take responsibility for his own personal care boosted his self-esteem.
Tom was happier, calmer, and proud of himself for being independent. He was less stressed and better able to concentrate and learn.
We put together our favourite TomTag visual supports to create this amazing value Back-to-School Toolkit to help other families like us who struggle with going back to school.
This toolkit includes visual supports from our ‘I Know What to Expect’ and ‘I Can Do It’ ranges plus printed copies of three of our popular download guides. With the TomTag system you can create all the visual supports you need to help your child as they head back to school after the holidays or start school for the first time so, like Tom, they can say ‘Back to School – I know what to expect and I can do it too!’
Key benefits
- Communicating how they feel about going back to school helps you and your child to recognise, understand and manage their worries and feelings
- Creating a structure and routine to mornings and evenings at home results in a calmer less chaotic start and end to the school day
- Encouraging independence by giving your child responsibility for themselves and their own school bag
- Showing your child exactly what they need to do and in what order helps reduce their anxiety and focuses them back on their routine
- Creating structure and routine at school results in predictability which reduces your child’s anxiety and helps concentration when they are at school
- Quickly and easily adapt your child’s routines, checklists, and timetables when something different is going to happen
Toolkit contents
- 10 Button Holders (in your choice of colours- use the order notes to specify your choice)
- 100 blank buttons to give you flexibility to create checklists, timetables, and routines
- 2 attachment loops to fasten your TomTag to a bag, belt, or hook
- 1 lanyard to carry your TomTag around
- Easy to follow instruction sheet to assemble your TomTag
- Copies of the following download guides:
- 1 Share How I Feel Minikit to help your child share and discuss their feelings, worries, and emotions ( in your choice of colour- use the order notes to specify your choice)
- Sticker packs:
- 1 My School Kit Sticker Pack: Contains a minimum of 3 copies of 45 beautifully illustrated different images (no word labels) for all the items your child might need to remember for school and out-of-school activities
- 1 Self-Care Skills Sticker Pack: Contains 72 symbol stickers (x 2 copies) for you to choose from to create morning and bedtime routines, getting dressed, bathroom activities, and general personal hygiene checklists
- 1 At School Sticker Pack: Contains 96 symbol stickers (x 2 copies) for you to choose from to make timetables, First/Then/Next prompts, reminders, and task lists
Each sticker pack contains 12 blank stickers for personalisation and 8 stickers to label your TomTag Button Holders. The School Kit Sticker Pack contains weekday sticker labels.
SAVE £9.50. The contents of this toolkit are worth £ 71.50 when bought separately.
Special Offer
Add the TomTag Feelings Notebook to your Back-to-School Toolkit order for £10 (usual price: £12.50). Use the Feelings Notebook with the Share How I Feel Minikit to help your child explore, understand, and communicate their feelings (use the drop-down box below to add this offer to your order)
Click the images to enlarge and view the gallery
Dimensions
- TomTag Button Holder:18cm x 3cm
- Buttons: 2cm diameter
How does TomTag work?
TomTag uses symbols to show a series of separate tasks or steps involved in a task that are part of a routine, a sequence of events in a timeline, or they can be used as a list to teach a new skill by breaking down a single activity into smaller steps.
Many children with autism and other additional needs have strong visual skills. They are more likely to remember and understand what they have seen rather than what they hear. Using a visual support like TomTag to present information visually and in a step-by-step manner allows visual thinkers and learners to take in information at their own pace. Visuals can also act as a reminder when children forget what’s been said or become distracted, TomTag helps to bring their attention back to the task or current situation.
Our customers say
“Tom tags are brilliant. My son is ADHD, ASD, and PDA so trying to get him to follow a routine without making it feel like demands is really tough. Tom tags help him to see his routine visually without me having to demand.”
“I recently got myself some Tom tags to help with my morning and evening routines and so far they are really helping. It’s been really helpful to have all the steps and tasks laid out, so I don’t get caught up in my head wondering what to do first or what I even have to do anyways. ”
“They allow my 7 year old to create, then to carry his visual timetable with him at school. It is the only visual he will use for school.”
“They really are amazing. My son went back to school today and while he has always struggled to organise himself, this morning he knew exactly what he needed to do and exactly what he needed to take to school. What a stress-free morning, I could get used to this!”
WARNING: Please note – TomTag is not a toy. Not suitable for children under 36 months due to small parts.
