Small Steps Workbook Companion

BACCI KID • WORKBOOK COMPANION

Small steps. More ways to practice.

Three complete, adult-supported activities for Small Steps, Bright Growth. Suggested for ages 5–9; adapt to the child. No supplies to buy, sign-up or child information required.

Build a support menu

A five-minute experiment in noticing what helps. Use with workbook pages 8, 10 and 12.

  1. Choose a pretend challenge: a noisy room, a tricky puzzle or getting ready. Ask: What might make this easier?
  2. Make three support cards: Help me start; Give me a quiet space; Show me one step. Draw a symbol on each. Add a child-created choice.
  3. Let the child choose a card for the pretend challenge. The adult responds with the named support. Switch roles if both want to.
  4. Try the support during one ordinary task. Ask: Keep it, change it or try something else? Record the child’s words, without grading the answer.

Which support made the next step easier?

Make it your own: point, sign, draw, speak or use a communication device. Offer only two choices if three feels too much.

Grown-up note

Do not withhold needed care or support until a child chooses a card. The cards are an invitation to communicate.

The two-minute team mission

A tiny shared project with a clear beginning and ending. Use with workbook pages 16, 18 and 19.

  1. Choose one small mission together: return three books, prepare paper for drawing or put napkins on a table. Use safe, familiar materials.
  2. Ask: Which part would you like? Agree on the adult’s part too. Make a two-picture plan: first we start; then we finish.
  3. Try the mission. Pause whenever someone needs help. Name an observed action: You carried one book to its shelf.
  4. Ask: What helped us work together? Choose one thing to repeat. A mission can end with asking for help or making it smaller.

What did each teammate contribute?

Try another setting: share the same two-picture plan with a caregiver, with the child’s knowledge. Keep expectations flexible across places.

Grown-up note

Choose tasks matched to the child’s abilities. Skip sharp, hot or heavy objects. Completion is not a condition for affection or basic care.

Words that help: story studio

A short make-believe story about a tricky moment and a helpful response. Use with workbook pages 20, 21 and 44-47.

  1. Start: Bacci and a friend both want the same drawing pencil. Ask: What might each character want? Different answers are welcome.
  2. Choose a phrase to try: Can I have a turn next? I need some space. Can you help us make a plan? The child can invent a phrase.
  3. Act out or draw two possible endings. One character can wait with support, choose another pencil or ask an adult to help. No forced sharing.
  4. Ask an open question: What would you change in the story? Write the child’s response exactly. Then ask permission before offering an adult idea.

Which words felt useful, and which would you change?

Another episode: the tower falls, a friend says no, or plans change. The child may pass or tell a different story.

Grown-up note

Do not require an apology, a hug, eye contact or repeating a phrase. Invite repair through a practical action when everyone is ready.

A simple reflection

On paper or in your workbook, finish: We tried… The child noticed… The adult will change… Our next small step is… Keep personal notes private; this page does not collect responses.

Using your QR codes

Each QR opens an activity on this page. These stable links allow the website content to be updated without changing the printed QR. Your downloaded PDF does not update automatically. If scanning is unavailable, use the printed web address or the clickable PDF link.

Created by Dr. Jamie J. Karia, DSW, LCSW. General educational creative play, not assessment, diagnosis or treatment. No particular outcome is promised.