

Some of you may have seen my Facebook post this week about how Tiimo helped me out in a tricky situation. This really reminded me why Tiimo is so amazing, I have lots of visuals and PECS cards but I don’t have them with me all the time. I do however always have my phone to hand and this is where the Tiimo app really comes into its own.
Managing unexpected change with Tiimo
For those that missed it my son excitedly choose to go swimming and we turned up at 11am to find the kids pool was closed until 1.30. It was a simple mistake on my part but not one my autistic 4 year old could understand or cope with. Plans change all the time and Tiimo gives me the ability to change our visual schedule as it happens. Yes my son wasn’t impressed that swimming was shifted until after lunch but once he saw it moved on the app to after lunch he understood. Swimming was still happening just later, this understanding meant he was able to leave the pool knowing we were coming back.
If a friend calls to say they are popping round I can add it into our plans from my phone and show the boys before they arrive. When I need to pop to the shop for that item we forgot I can add it in at a moment’s notice. Unexpected change can be a huge trigger for people on the autistic spectrum but generally my boys are much more able to manage unexpected change with some preparation. There are always going to be times when that preparation isn’t possible but being able to provide visual clarification in these moments makes so much difference.

What is new with Tiimo?
There are a few new things I want to let you know about Tiimo, firstly there has been an update.

Updated app
There is a new updated app. You can download the new version and use your existing log in. I have found the new app is quicker to load and respond. It also has a nice new function where you can start and finish activities easily by dragging the arrow around the activity icon.

Tiimo is more accessible
Free access to the web calendar
You can now use the Tiimo web calendar for free, this is a brilliant way to take a look at the calendar and its functions. I use it to set up our daily schedules and activities. I particularly like to use the routines function as my kids have set morning and evening routines that I can then use the repeat function with.

This web calendar gives you an overview of the day or week and a great visual calendar which can be personalised with your own photos or icons. This is great for me as I can add photos of people and icons that we already use and the boys are familiar with, such as our toilet visuals or PECS Icons.

When you have got your head around the calendar and you can then sign up for the 30 day free trial and use the app to see if it works for you and your family.
If you haven’t tried Tiimo yet I would recommend signing up for the free web calendar access and taking a look. You will need to do this online not in the app.

Why isn’t Tiimo free?
The main way to fund a free app and sustain the employee’s salaries is through in app advertising. However the point of Tiimo is to provide focus on the activity / schedule and including disruptive advertisements within the app would make it less effective. Having said that Tiimo are committed to making the app as accessible as possible and that is why they will be introducing and trialling different pricing options over the coming months. They are currently looking at ‘pay what you can’ schemes and a less expensive pricing model. You can read more about this in their blog post on why Tiimo isn’t free. I will also keep you updated on my social media channels as new options arise.
This looks like brilliant technology. So well explained Jade…
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It is amazing how helpful technology can be xx
What a fantastic idea and I love that you can personalise it with your own photos too – so helpful for younger ones who may benefit from an actual image of their peg at school or the person they are going to visit etc
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It’s so helpful and great when they are older can keep using it on a smartwatch too.
Wow. There really are so many ideas out there. Clever app#KCACOLS
Sounds a practical and worthwhile bit of tech that how help in a chaos life X #kcacols
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Absolutely. Thanks for stopping by xx
My neighbours have 2 children with autism, so I am going to recommend this to them #,kcacols@_karendennis
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Thanks Karen that’s a great idea
It’s great that things like this are finally available to parents. Simple things that can make your life so much easier. #KCACOLS
I haven’t heard of this app but it sounds brilliant as a visual aid for your children. My daughter is only 2.5 but I am trying to find daily tools and ways of easily explaining things to her so she can start to understand our routine. Perhaps I need to download the app 🙂 #KCACOLS
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It’s great to use visual aids with young kids I wish I had done it more with them when they were very little. Always helps when you can understand something.
How fantastic that you can add your own imaging that your children are familiar with! #KCACOLS
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It makes such a difference x
This sounds like such a useful app to have. A visual aid is so useful for little ones #KCACOLS
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It really is so useful
This looks like a really helpful app, I hadn’t heard of it before. #kcacols
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It is very helpful. Glad I have introduced it to you xx
This all sounds super organised to me!! #KCACOLS
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Still often very last minute organisation
This really does sound like a fabulous app! #KCACOLS
I’ve been nervous about anything that requires a subscription for the boys – I’m worried about the service disappearing or for some reason us not having access to it anymore. But I’ve thought about this type of thing a lot as it looks really useful. Thanks for linking it to #spectrumsunday
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Thanks -I think there may be options outside of a subscription coming up so I will keep you updated.
The Tiimo app seems great! Personally I’m terrible at using calendars etc, so I’m not sure how good I’d be at using it. I bought myself a planner in January and have hardly written anything in it yet… x #SpectrumSunday
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I need to use calendars otherwise I forgot what’s happening! To be honest we use Tiimo for the kids routines and their plans mostly