Quick Cue:

Simple visual tools for real communication.

Quick Cue is a universal visual cue system designed to make communication clearer, calmer, and more inclusive across classrooms, clinics, hospitals and homes.

Co-created by an Occupational Therapist and an experienced Parent and Teacher Aide, and informed by psychology and speech and language practice, Quick Cue brings together education and health perspectives. It is grounded in evidence, shaped by lived experience, and built to work in real life.

Whether you’re supporting a whole class, at a hospital appointment, running a therapy session, or guiding your own child through daily routines, Quick Cue offers visual access to communication — helping people feel seen, heard, and understood when it matters most.

Our mission is to bridge the gap between therapy and real life by creating practical, fast-to-use tools that give people access to communication, connection, and participation — grounded in evidence, informed by lived experience, and designed to work in real life.

What is Quick Cue?

Quick Cue is a universal visual cue system designed to make communication clearer, calmer, and more inclusive across classrooms, clinics, and homes.

Why Quick Cue?

Communication and connection can fall apart in the moments that matter most — during transitions, pain, big emotions, sensory overload, changes in routine, or when a child doesn’t yet have the words.

Quick Cue exists because visual access to communication is essential, especially in settings like hospitals, kindergartens, classrooms, and busy family environments where clarity and predictability matter most.

Visuals cut through overwhelm. They reduce cognitive load, support understanding, and offer a consistent point of reference when language is unavailable or unreliable. They allow children to communicate needs and expectations without pressure or verbal demand.

Quick Cue makes these moments easier by providing simple, ready-to-use visuals that are available exactly when they’re needed.

Wearable and durable — always within reach, for real-time support, not “next term.”
Evidence-informed design — created by clinicians who live this work. No laminating. No prep. No fuss.
Accessible and inclusive — works across age, ability, language, and setting.
Built with community — purposeful feedback loops ensure the system evolves with real-world needs.

Quick Cue exists for one reason:
everyone deserves to be understood.

Why Visuals?

Visuals help people understand the world when words aren’t enough. They reduce cognitive load, support memory, and provide clarity during moments of stress, pain, sensory overload, unfamiliar environments, illness, or developmental difference.

Across health, education, and community settings, visual supports are widely used because they:

provide access to communication when verbal language is limited or unreliable
reduce anxiety by increasing predictability and clarity
support understanding and participation across ages and abilities
help people anticipate what’s coming next, especially during transitions
support communication for people with diverse communication profiles
remain available and consistent, without relying on processing speed, vocabulary, or perfect timing

In hospitals, classrooms, kindergartens, and busy family environments, visuals are especially valuable in high-stress, time-pressured moments where quick comprehension matters.

We know visuals are often available — on walls, in folders, or tucked away in drawers — but too often they’re not referenced in the moment they’re needed. They can be hard to find, time-consuming to prepare, or impractical to use during busy, real-life situations.

Quick Cue is designed to shift visuals from the background to the foreground. By being wearable, durable, and easy to clean, the visuals are immediately accessible when communication matters most. They require minimal setup, minimal training, and no extra preparation — making them hard to ignore and easy to use.

→ You can explore the research and deeper discussion in our linked blog posts and reference list.

What’s Inside

A curated set of visual cue cards on a lanyard-sized ring.
A QR code linking to our supportive digital library - research summaries, information sheets, example documents used to support implementations and research summaries.
A 15-minute training (linked to the QR code) for confident use right away - short enough to watch in a lunch break or team meeting.
Feedback forms for continuous refinement and improvement (again all in one place, the QR code).

Why Ours Is Different

There are plenty of visuals out there — but most require printing, laminating, assembling, and remembering where you left them. Educators and parents already know they “should” be using visuals… the barrier is the workload required to make them usable.

Quick Cue is different because:

Co-created by the people who live this work

Quick Cue is designed by an Occupational Therapist, Teacher Aide/ Parent, and informed by a Clinical Psychologist and Speech & Language Pathologist. It blends professional insight with practical lived experience.

We’ve seen how powerful visuals are in hospitals, classrooms, therapy rooms, and busy homes — and we’ve also seen the gaps when visuals weren’t available or accessible.

Practical and durable design. No laminating. No printing. No prep.

Educators already know they “should” be using visuals, but making them is too time-consuming. Quick Cue removes that barrier.

We've lived the printing/ cutting/ laminating/ cutting loop more times than you can count (including scissor blisters). We get it.

Accessible and easy to use

Our visuals work across ages, communication profiles, languages, and settings. You don't need another task, just clip on your keys, watch a 15 min video - go. We've also drafted the risk assessment and IEP for you (you will need to individualise to your setting/ child), all in an easy QR link.

A tool that grows with community needs

Nothing is static. Your insights shape the next version. We want all the feedback, good, bad and messy.

We've been in a lot of settings, but haven't been in your setting. We have created this for you, and plan on growing it with you.

How to use Quick Cue

Clip it on to your lanyard, bag, or keyring.
Use the visuals during transitions, routines, communication moments, and regulation.
Scan the QR code for additional information sheets, example risk assessments, example Individual Education Plans, and a short (15 min) training video.
Adapt as needed for your class, child, or clinical setting.
Share feedback so future versions keep improving.

Our Feedback Loop

Quick Cue is being built with you, not at you.
No single tool fits every child or classroom, and we don’t expect it to. Our commitment is to listen, refine, and iterate based on what educators, families, and clinicians tell us.

Each pilot, email suggestion, teacher comment, parent message, or clinician insight guides the next evolution of Quick Cue.

We have big plans for future versions, but we are committed to being responsive to our community actual needs, real classrooms, and real children.

Your feedback drives this project forward.

Feedback Forms

We would love to hear what you think, what works, what doesn't and what we can do better next time.

Here's my thoughts!

Training & Professional Development

Quick Cue includes optional short, accessible PD for teams who want deeper understanding:

15-minute training module - short enough to watch over lunch!
Printable information sheets for educators and parents
Reference lists with DOIs

Training is designed to be fast, practical, and realistic for busy educators. You already have the knowledge about the power of visual information, this is a 15 minute how to and refresher!

Join our Waiting List

Be the first to access pilot sets, training options, and early-release resources. We promise so spam (we don't actually have time to write filler emails!), just updates regarding the trial/ waiting lists etc as they happen.

As of January 2026 we are trialling our first print with 50 wonderful educators, therapists and parents testing and providing feedback for us. From there, depending on feedback and demand, we will do our next print run.

We would love for you to join us.

Quick Cue is proudly part of Look Hear Australia — an Clinician-led allied health service committed to evidence-informed, practical supports for families, schools, and communities.

Our mantra is "It's not hard to make it easy"

Who We Are

Tara Rossow

Senior Occupational Therapist

Co-Creator, Quick Cue

Co-Founder, Look Hear Australia

Tara is a Senior Paediatric Occupational Therapist with extensive experience supporting children, families, and educational teams across Australia and the United Kingdom.

Since graduating from James Cook University in 2012, she has worked across private practice, national disability services, secure mental health, the NHS, and school-based settings. Tara is known for her practical, neuro-affirming approach and her ability to translate evidence into strategies that genuinely work in real-life environments.

Tara is currently one of the Co-Convenor of the Occupational Therapy Australia (OTA) QLD Paediatric Special Interest Group.

She has contributed to national and international publications including Occupational Therapy Guide to Good Practice: Working with Children (OTA, 2016), Sensory Processing: A Guide for Parents (Cerebra, 2023), and has presented for the STAR Institute for Sensory Processing (Denver, USA).

Tara brings the clinical grounding behind Quick Cue — ensuring the visuals are evidence-informed, ethical, and reflective of best practice across health and early childhood.

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Sonia Hartwig

Parent

Co-Creator, Quick Cue

Teacher Aide

Sonia brings deep lived experience to Quick Cue — as a teacher aide, parent, and advocate for children with disability, neurodiversity, and complex medical needs.

She has extensive experience supporting children with autism and diverse communication profiles in classroom settings, drawing on years of hands-on work helping students navigate learning, regulation, and daily routines. Her practical understanding of what actually works in real classrooms shapes the simplicity and usability of every Quick Cue design.

Sonia has spent significant time in hospital environments where clear communication tools are essential but not always readily available. Her lived experience in paediatric and adult medical settings informs Quick Cue’s commitment to universal access, dignity, and consistent visual use across home, school, and healthcare.

Sonia is a strong advocate for disability inclusion, particularly within medical systems where families often face barriers to being heard. Her insight ensures Quick Cue remains grounded, respectful, and genuinely supportive for children, families, and educators.

Last updated November 2025