Twelve story starters and six reusable prompts for imaginative small-world play. Each offers a possible moment in a story. Children can choose the characters, decide what happened and take the play in their own direction. Use the cards with your woodland figures, loose parts and movable environment pieces.

The starters include a disappearance, a coming storm, someone lost, an animal needing help, approaching winter, an unusual find, a new arrival, a blocked path, too little food, a new home, an overnight change and a hidden sound. The reusable prompts ask what happens next, who comes along, where they will go, what has changed, who could help and what they might need.

Offer one idea and follow the play

Place a card near a small choice of figures and materials, or introduce it when it connects with a child’s story. Read the short line aloud if useful, then pause. Children might act, make sounds, move a figure, point or tell you an idea. They do not need to read the card, answer a question or complete a story.

The pictures are possible starting points. Children can choose different animals, invent another explanation or ignore the suggestion. For “Something has disappeared”, the missing thing is theirs to decide. For the hidden sound, leave its source open. These are pretend story situations; use animal figures and suitable props.

Keep the conversation responsive

Notice what the child has already introduced: “The mouse stopped at the path.” You could echo an idea or add a few words that help them express it. Offer one reusable prompt when helpful, then allow time. Avoid running through all six questions. A repeated action or a very short episode can be a worthwhile story in its own right.

Use the reusable cards with any starter, with a child’s existing story or on their own. They are choices, not a sequence. Follow children’s feelings and interests; choose a gentler starter or change the wording if loss, storms or needing a new home feels uncomfortable. Children can stop, change or return to a story whenever they wish.

Make room for different ways to join in

Offer fewer figures, larger lightweight pieces and a reachable play space where helpful. Children can select a character, use gesture or their usual communication supports, direct a partner or watch first. If a child wants a record, an adult can write down their words or help them photograph the play. Recording is optional.

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