40 practical activity cards to help you stop guessing and begin discovering what supports your child’s body.
Your child gets home and the smallest thing causes an explosion.
They are exhausted, but they cannot stop moving. They ask you to stay close, then shout at you to go away. They reject every suggestion you make, even when you know they desperately need some kind of support.
Or perhaps they completely withdraw. They disappear under a blanket, stop talking or answer every question with, “I don’t know.”
You understand that they are not choosing to struggle. You know their behaviour is communicating something but in that moment, you are still left wondering:
What do I actually do?
Should you offer movement or encourage rest? Give them space or stay nearby? Try to connect through play or reduce everything around them? Help them notice what is happening inside their body or stop asking questions altogether?
The Safe Squad Helper Cards give you a practical place to begin.
Each of the 40 cards contains a simple activity to explore with your child, an explanation of why it may help and clear guidance about what you might notice.
Not another generic list of “calming strategies.”
Not activities to make your child behave, comply or look calm.
A practical way to discover what actually feels supportive to your individual child.
Every Card Helps You Understand More Than the Activity
You do not simply receive a picture and an instruction telling your child to “calm down.” Every card includes:
A practical activity - Clear instructions for something you can explore together without needing specialist equipment or hours of preparation.
Why it may help - A straightforward explanation of what the activity may offer the body and why some children find it supportive.
Body clues to notice - Prompts that help you notice whether your child wants more, less, something different or to stop.
Protector guidance - Suggestions about the protective responses the activity may support, helping you consider the need beneath the behaviour.
Alternatives and adaptations - Different ways to explore the activity so you can follow your child’s communication, sensory preferences and capacity.
You are not expected to work through the cards in order or complete every activity.
Some will become favourites. Some will not suit your child at all. That is not failure—it is useful information.
What You Will Receive
Your immediate digital download includes:
40 printable Safe Squad Helper Cards
10 Turtle activities for grounding and settling
10 Otter activities for connection and co-regulation
10 Olly Owl activities for body awareness and interoception
10 Sunny Snail activities for pacing and recovery
An introduction to the InnerMe body-first approach
A clear explanation of each Helper’s role
Guidance about choosing and introducing activities
A nervous-system explanation on every card
Body clues and observation prompts
Protector guidance
Adaptations and alternative ways to explore the activities
The full PDF will be delivered to your email address immediately after purchase.
You can print the complete pack, select the cards most relevant to your child or keep the digital version nearby when you need ideas.
Who Are the Helper Cards For?
The Helper Cards are designed for parents and carers whose child may:
Become overwhelmed by apparently small things
Mask outside the home and then crash
Be exhausted but unable to slow down
Struggle to recognise hunger, thirst or tiredness
Say “I don’t know” when asked what is wrong
Reject support when they are distressed
Seek lots of movement, pressure or repetitive sensory experiences
Withdraw, become quiet or power down
Find transitions and demands exhausting
Need significant recovery after school
Struggle with school attendance
Experience sensitive nervous-system responses
Be autistic, have ADHD or process sensory information differently
Be recovering from prolonged stress, overwhelm or burnout
No diagnosis is needed.
The activities can be adapted for children and young people with different communication styles, sensory preferences, developmental needs and levels of capacity.
They can also be used by therapists, teachers and other professionals within their direct work with children and families.
