SubjectNest · play with a familiar adult

Ten complete invitations

Choose any start. No earlier page or play session is required. Rest, change or finish anytime.

11 · A welcome with a choice

Say this, or use your own words

Would our visitor like to join, watch, or do something else?

Ready in a moment

A comfortable spot and an imaginary visitor. A page is optional; no toy is needed.

Try a little play

Invent a tiny place together, or borrow Paper Harbour. Offer the opening once and wait.
Give the visitor two possible ways to take part. Watching, staying elsewhere and leaving remain available.
Follow one choice in the pretend story. Ask before adding a doorway or moving anyone's drawing.
Ask whether to keep playing or finish. A welcome does not need an accepted invitation.

Choose a useful route

Communication: Name join and watch one at a time, with another idea or finish available. Wait for the child's familiar voice, sign, AAC or agreed selection signal, then confirm. An unclear response is not agreement.
Making or paper: Draw two broad places, such as a making patch and a watching patch. The child names their meaning or directs your marks. Try one pretend arrival; the adult's drawing stays adult-made.
Observe or imagine: Let the child watch while you describe a visitor asking to join. Offer one clear choice about what happens next, then follow it. Watching alone does not tell us the child's chosen answer.

Two fictional ideas to borrow

Workshop fiction: A cloud visitor watches a pretend drawing room before deciding to join. The child chooses the watching place; the adult does not turn it into a waiting-for-your-turn rule.
Transport fiction: An imaginary bus room offers a quiet waiting patch and a chat patch. A visitor chooses to leave instead. That departure belongs in the story and does not mean the welcome failed.

Notice, then choose the next move

Notice an actual offered or chosen option, including a declined invitation. If the choices were unclear, offer one named option at a time next turn.

Later fresh start: Start a fresh place with a visitor who wants a different way to join. No earlier drawing or remembered answer is needed.

Optional extra: With permission, offer a willing familiar adult the same real choice during play. Follow their actual reply; a pretend visitor's reply remains fiction.

Adult intention: Offer a welcome that leaves a real choice.

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12 · A job that helps

Say this, or use your own words

What little job would help our pretend place today?

Ready in a moment

Name a pretend room, garden or parcel place. Use a page or a spoken scene.

Try a little play

Invent one thing that wants doing: finding a message, welcoming someone or putting a drawn page away.
Invite the child to choose a job, invent another, watch or rest. Nobody has to earn their place by working.
Play one small job and name what it was meant to help. An imagined job can stay imagined.
Keep, swap or finish the job. Ask before assigning another role.

Choose a useful route

Communication: Offer two named jobs, then the child's own idea or no job. Use their established communication and confirm the chosen purpose. Ask who does which part only if that helps the play.
Making or paper: Make a broad mark for a pretend message place. The child can put a drawn message there, direct your placement, or leave it as a plan. Name who actually made or moved each part.
Observe or imagine: Narrate a pretend helper delivering one imaginary page. Invite the child to choose the destination while remaining still. If they prefer watching, leave the scene open without attributing your job to them.

Two fictional ideas to borrow

Home fiction: A visitor's job is to show guests where the pretend coats go. The child chooses a wide doorway patch; the adult draws it on direction. No real coat storage is changed.
Library fiction: An imaginary helper puts a made-up book beside a reading place. The child changes the job to welcoming instead. Real library membership and services need the separate dated adult fact check.

Notice, then choose the next move

Notice a child's actual link between a job and its purpose. If only the adult chose the job, invite one smaller decision next time.

Later fresh start: Invent a different place and one wanted job, or let a visitor rest with no job. No previous role needs recalling.

Optional extra: If useful, invite the child to suggest a safe ordinary family job they already know. A familiar adult decides actual suitability; pretend competence is not a real-task safety check.

Adult intention: Connect a chosen job with a useful purpose.

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13 · Room for two ideas

Say this, or use your own words

Can our tiny place hold two different ideas?

Ready in a moment

Two imagined visitors and a flat page, or two spoken place ideas. No furniture moves.

Try a little play

Invent one visitor who wants a quiet place and another who wants to tell a story. These are fictional preferences, not labels for children.
Ask the child what each could use. Both ideas can remain separate, change, or wait.
Make or describe one possible arrangement. Try one pretend visit if wanted.
Ask what should stay. Two different choices do not need a single winner.

Choose a useful route

Communication: Name each visitor's pretend preference separately. Let the child suggest a place through familiar communication. Confirm which meaning belongs to which visitor; no spoken explanation or paired answer is required.
Making or paper: Use one or both empty panels for the two ideas. Broad marks or adult-directed drawing work. Keep the meanings beside the marks, and leave unused panels empty rather than filling them for appearance.
Observe or imagine: Describe two places with no picture: a listening room and a quiet room. Ask which one the first visitor chooses. The child can observe, choose an own place or stop before the second choice.

Two fictional ideas to borrow

Music fiction: One visitor likes an imaginary rehearsal; another chooses a still room. The child connects the rooms with a described doorway. No sound is played or acoustic benefit tested.
Garden fiction: Two invented visitors choose shade and open sky in a paper garden. These choices belong to the story, rather than being facts about real plants or animals.

Notice, then choose the next move

Notice how the child communicates a difference or a chosen arrangement. Next time offer another pair of preferences, or simplify to one visitor.

Later fresh start: Begin with two fresh interests, such as looking and making, with no earlier work required.

Optional extra: Invite a willing play partner to propose a separate idea. Ask before joining the ideas. A partner can keep theirs separate.

Adult intention: Make space for different preferences without forcing agreement.

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14 · Ask before a change

Say this, or use your own words

May I change this part, or shall it stay?

Ready in a moment

An actual available wanted drawing, or a fresh broad adult-made mark. Keep each maker's ownership clear.

Try a little play

Show which part belongs to whom. If there is no earlier drawing, make a new adult-owned doorway mark now.
Ask the opening before altering the chosen part. Keep yes, no, another idea and no response distinct.
Follow a clear answer. After an unclear response, leave the part as it is and offer a pause.
Offer the child a turn to ask about your mark, or finish. Saying no does not require a reason.

Choose a useful route

Communication: Use the child's existing yes/no or selection system. Ask about one specific change, such as a doorway's position, and wait. Confirm consent before acting; silence or an ambiguous gesture is not permission.
Making or paper: Place a new possible version beside the original on the change aid. Ask before replacing an original mark. The child may direct an adult's pencil; that help stays named separately.
Observe or imagine: Tell a scene in which one imaginary maker asks another to add a window. Offer keep or change as named choices. A fictional consent exchange does not establish consent for changing a real child's work.

Two fictional ideas to borrow

Art fiction: An adult asks to add a pretend roof to the child's drawn room. The child chooses no. They continue playing with the existing room; the adult leaves the page alone.
Community fiction: Two imaginary makers plan a shared room. One asks to shift a doorway and the other proposes a separate entrance. No real building or person's access is changed.

Notice, then choose the next move

Notice an actual request, response and respected action. If adult speed crowded out the response, slow the invitation and ask one specific question next time.

Later fresh start: Use a fresh adult-owned mark and invite one change request. Earlier consent never carries automatically to a new action.

Optional extra: Invent a visitor who changes its mind. Agree a new clear choice before continuing; no performance or real personal story is needed.

Adult intention: Practise asking, listening and respecting a decision in shared play.

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15 · A turn we agree

Say this, or use your own words

How could we both use this pretend place?

Ready in a moment

A familiar willing adult and one imagined space. No timer, prize, scarce toy or waiting challenge.

Try a little play

Invent a place both characters might use. Ask whether shared play is wanted; separate places work too.
Offer one arrangement: together, separate parts, one then another, or a different idea. Confirm both partners' choices.
Try one agreed pretend exchange. Pause if someone changes their mind, and choose a new arrangement together.
Close, continue or separate. A turn is an agreement for this play, not a rule to enforce at home.

Choose a useful route

Communication: Name together or separate as a small first choice. A child can use familiar sign, AAC, voice or direction to an adult. Invite a second partner's actual choice without requiring the child to give up their own.
Making or paper: Give each willing maker a broad space on the shared-choice aid. Ask whether a connecting mark is wanted. If the adult makes it, label their help; no actual item has to be passed or shared.
Observe or imagine: Narrate an imaginary pair using a room at different times. The child can choose who enters first, choose simultaneous play or watch. Pretend agreement is different from a real partner agreeing.

Two fictional ideas to borrow

Story fiction: Two visitors use a cloud stage, one telling a tale while the other watches. The child swaps their roles after asking. No audience performance or timed wait is required.
Making fiction: Two pretend builders use different halves of a drawn workshop. They leave a shared doorway undecided. The story can continue without completing an agreement about every part.

Notice, then choose the next move

Notice the actual choices that made the exchange possible, including a choice for separate play. If an arrangement was too demanding, offer parallel spaces next time.

Later fresh start: Offer a new shared imaginary job with a fresh willing partner, or a solo version. No turn-taking score follows the child.

Optional extra: Try changing the arrangement after one pretend exchange. Ask each willing partner again, rather than assuming an earlier yes still applies.

Adult intention: Negotiate a small shared-play arrangement with a willing partner.

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16 · A sign with a purpose

Say this, or use your own words

What should this mark tell our visitor?

Ready in a moment

A blank page or the message aid. A familiar adult can make or read all marks.

Try a little play

Choose a pretend place and one message, such as come this way, wait here or your own idea.
Make one broad mark or use familiar communication. Ask what it means in this scene; do not guess from its shape.
With permission, invite a willing adult to say what they think it means. Tell them the child's intended meaning if needed.
Keep, explain, change or finish. A different interpretation is useful information, not a failed child answer.

Choose a useful route

Communication: The child chooses a message through familiar AAC, sign, voice or a clearly agreed point. The adult checks the meaning and can deliver it without writing. Existing communication symbols keep their established meanings.
Making or paper: Use the large message area for one chosen mark and the separate meaning area for adult scribing if wanted. The recipient may ask what it means. Nobody needs to read independently or spell a word.
Observe or imagine: Describe a fictional sign saying wait by the cloud door. Ask whether the visitor follows, asks a question or leaves. The invented reply is story dialogue, not actual evidence that a sign was understood.

Two fictional ideas to borrow

Library fiction: A broad curved mark means book returns here in the child's pretend room. A willing adult first guesses it is a seat. They agree to add spoken guidance; the actual adult interpretation is kept distinct from fiction.
Transport fiction: A drawn square means wait beside this imaginary stop. The child directs the adult to make it. No official road symbol, travel route or universal square meaning is taught.

Notice, then choose the next move

Notice the child's intended meaning and any actual recipient response. Next time offer another form, or keep a spoken explanation alongside the mark.

Later fresh start: Make a fresh message for a different imaginary recipient. No stored sign or previous misunderstanding is required.

Optional extra: Give one message two forms, such as a broad picture and a familiar spoken phrase. Ask which helps this particular willing recipient today.

Adult intention: Give a mark a particular meaning and check that meaning with its recipient.

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17 · One small change

Say this, or use your own words

Shall we try one change in our paper place?

Ready in a moment

A flat drawing or a fresh described scene. No building, tools, obstacle course or real access test.

Try a little play

Choose one fictional purpose, such as finding a message or reaching a drawn resting patch.
Describe or make a first idea now. Choose one possible change; keep the first version only if it really exists.
If wanted, try it by tracing, directing an adult's trace or narrating a pretend action. Name exactly which kind of try happened.
Ask what was noticed, then keep, change or finish. An untried idea stays a plan.

Choose a useful route

Communication: The child names or selects a destination and directs one pretend move through familiar communication. Ask whether to keep or change one part. An adult's directed trace is attributed to the adult, with the child's direction named.
Making or paper: Draw an initial doorway mark, then a possible new position in a second empty panel. Trace an actual drawn version only if wanted. Two drawings alone do not demonstrate that a route works for a real person.
Observe or imagine: Narrate one imagined journey while the child watches or chooses a destination. Label this a story try. Invite a later paper try without making physical action necessary for participation.

Two fictional ideas to borrow

Delivery fiction: The child shifts a pretend message spot nearer a doorway. The adult traces the drawn route on direction and reports that actual trace. No real parcel delivery or access improvement occurred.
Ocean fiction: A visitor's route to a made-up bay changes around an imaginary island. The child keeps the change as a spoken plan. No journey or improvement is claimed before a try.

Notice, then choose the next move

Notice the chosen purpose, specific change and any actual try. If no try happened, invite one optional small use later, or enjoy the plan as a story.

Later fresh start: Choose a fresh fictional purpose and first idea. The change can be different; there is no earlier-result or memory test.

Optional extra: Keep two possible changes with different story purposes. Neither has to be best, and a willing partner may prefer a different version.

Adult intention: Connect a chosen change with an optional actual pretend try.

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18 · A message that gets there

Say this, or use your own words

Who is our message for, and how shall it arrive?

Ready in a moment

An imagined recipient or a willing familiar adult. A page is optional; keep names and addresses fictional.

Try a little play

Choose a pretend message and recipient, or a private reminder. The child can choose not to send.
Pick a delivery way: tell, sign, show a mark, or direct an adult. Ask permission before sharing their creation.
If a willing real adult receives it, ask what they actually understood. If the recipient is invented, keep the reply labelled fiction.
Repeat, change the delivery or finish. No child contact information, photograph or online sending is needed.

Choose a useful route

Communication: Deliver one agreed message in the child's familiar mode, with a competent adult supporting where wanted. Ask the willing recipient to check the meaning. A different mode is optional, not a route to force speech.
Making or paper: Put one message and its intended meaning on the empty aid, or use a plain page. The child can direct an adult to show it to a willing partner. Keep the adult's writing and delivery help separate.
Observe or imagine: Describe a pretend post room carrying a message to a cloud visitor. Let the child choose the imagined destination or keep watching. Do not invent a real recipient's reply to fill an observation.

Two fictional ideas to borrow

Home fiction: A make-believe doorway message says please ask before entering. A willing familiar adult repeats its meaning during play. That actual exchange is different from proof that every visitor understands it.
Space fiction: A message goes to a made-up moon workshop by an imaginary shuttle. The child chooses a private story and no sharing. No actual sending, address or space-flight fact is supplied.

Notice, then choose the next move

Notice an intended recipient, a chosen delivery way and any actual response. Next time simplify the message or offer an agreed second way if it would help.

Later fresh start: Choose a fresh recipient or private reminder with one message. Earlier messages need not be kept or recalled.

Optional extra: Have a willing partner offer a message back, using their own preferred communication. The child may decline the exchange or ask an adult to help interpret.

Adult intention: Choose a recipient and a useful way to deliver a message.

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19 · A place ready for next time

Say this, or use your own words

What could we keep ready for another little visit?

Ready in a moment

One actual wanted page, or a fresh pretend scene. A safe adult-chosen place for an existing page is optional.

Try a little play

Ask what, if anything, the child wants to keep. A partly made or disappearing story is fine.
Choose a next-use idea: leave a message, describe where a page goes, remember one part, or keep nothing.
If there is a real page and permission, put it in the agreed adult-approved place. Otherwise describe the plan without reporting it as done.
Finish warmly. Keeping a creation never requires a photograph, display or progress record.

Choose a useful route

Communication: Name keep or finish one at a time, with another idea available. Confirm the child's choice through established communication. A story can close orally; no record is needed to make it worthwhile.
Making or paper: On the message-and-care aid, mark a chosen pretend return place, or direct the adult to note where an actual page is kept. Record only what really happened and who handled it. Empty areas may remain empty.
Observe or imagine: Tell a story of a visitor returning a drawn book to a named pretend place. The child can choose that place or watch. This is not evidence of a real tidy-up or independent self-care task.

Two fictional ideas to borrow

Art play: A child agrees that a real drawing may go in an adult-selected folder already available. The adult places it there. The child's keeping decision and the adult's handling remain separately described.
Garden fiction: An imagined visitor leaves a made-up garden ready for another story. The child keeps no materials. No actual plants, tools, environmental care or next-day visit is asserted.

Notice, then choose the next move

Notice an actual keep, close or care decision and any practical action. If storage became another job for the family, offer the no-keeping route next time.

Later fresh start: Start from a fresh place, even if nothing was kept. The earlier page is useful only if available and wanted.

Optional extra: Invite a new name or message for a kept page with permission. A new edition can stay private; no display or improvement is required.

Adult intention: Choose a manageable way to care for or close a creation.

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20 · A welcome someone can use

Say this, or use your own words

What one thing would help a willing visitor join?

Ready in a moment

A new imaginary place or an actual wanted creation. A willing familiar adult is optional; the fictional model can be ignored.

Try a little play

Choose a place and one way a visitor could join, watch, stay elsewhere or decline. A new place is a complete start.
Make one useful guide part: a named place, an agreed message or a spoken invitation. The child owns its meaning.
With permission, try it with a willing adult or in an explicitly pretend scene. Ask what actually happened in that chosen kind of try.
Keep, explain, change, repeat or finish. There is no final project, public presentation or reward for completing all ten.

Choose a useful route

Communication: Offer a visitor one welcome choice through the child's familiar mode. Check their intended meaning and any willing recipient's actual reply. Adults can interpret or operate a device on direction; the support remains named.
Making or paper: Use any part of the blank welcome aid for one guide item. A broad mark with agreed meaning can be enough. An adult can scribe with permission; the supplied Paper Harbour picture stays a fictional model, not the child's work.
Observe or imagine: Begin with an invented visitor asking to watch. Let the child choose the place or observe your narration. All the welcome information can stay in a story, with no making or performance demanded.

Two fictional ideas to borrow

Community fiction: A pretend meeting room has a watching place and a making place. A willing adult follows the child's spoken welcome during play, then asks about one unclear mark. That response can inform a change.
Workshop fiction: A moon visitor chooses to stay outside a made-up workshop. The child keeps a private oral guide and finishes. No real accessibility review, audience uptake or completed-year outcome is claimed.

Notice, then choose the next move

Notice the child's chosen welcome information, available support and any actual response. Plan the next invitation from interest and context, rather than completion of this pack.

Later fresh start: Repeat a favourite, begin any new invitation or follow a new child-led interest. Earlier work and a two-week schedule are optional.

Optional extra: If the child wants, invite one new play idea for an adult to word as a future card. Separate their idea from the adult's wording; share only with appropriate permission.

Adult intention: Combine a welcome choice and useful information for a particular recipient.

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