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Quirky Kid marked 15 years of the Just Like When Cards in 2024, celebrating one of the organisation’s earliest therapeutic resources and a milestone in its publishing history.
First published in 2009, the cards grew from themes encountered through Quirky Kid’s clinical work with children and families. They were designed to help children explore personal experiences and emotions through illustrated scenarios covering topics such as jealousy, sibling rivalry, peer conflict, confusion and anger.
The anniversary also provided an opportunity to revisit how a resource initially developed from clinical practice became part of Quirky Kid’s broader work across psychology, education and publishing.
From clinical idea to professional resource
Dr Kimberley O’Brien developed the Just Like When Cards from recurring experiences and conversations in child psychology practice. The illustrated format was intended to give children a less direct way to discuss sensitive or difficult situations while giving adults a practical starting point for conversation.
By 2016, the cards were listed in the Australian Council for Educational Research clinical resources catalogue, providing an independent record of their professional distribution alongside other Quirky Kid therapeutic resources.
Designed for clinics, classrooms and homes
The Just Like When Cards can be used by psychologists, educators and parents to open discussion about emotions, relationships and social situations. Their illustrated scenarios create opportunities for reflection without requiring a child to begin with a direct description of their own experience.
The current Just Like When Cards product page continues to describe their use across clinics, classrooms and family settings.
A second edition was released in 2019, extending the life of a resource that had already become part of Quirky Kid’s established therapeutic publishing catalogue.
Fifteen years of Quirky Kid publishing
The anniversary sits within a wider publishing history that later included Power Up!, The Best of Friends®, Basecamp® and other psychology-informed resources for children and the adults who support them.
Read about the original publication of the Just Like When Cards.
The 15-year milestone is significant because it reflects the durability of an early Quirky Kid idea: translating child psychology into practical, thoughtfully designed resources that can be used beyond the consulting room.
