I’ll be honest – when we first tried Fables World, I wasn’t sure it was the right fit for Priya. She’s autistic and school is already an uphill battle. Every day feels like a mission just to get her through. Schoolwork, homework, it all piles up, and maths was just one of the many challenges we faced.
At first, using Fables World at home felt overwhelming. The extra work seemed like too much, so once she finished the challenges, she needed a break. We stopped and focused on schoolwork instead – though that, too, was a struggle, often ending in tears, especially when it came to times tables against the clock.
A year later, the creator of Fables World reached out to ask if Priya needed any help. I declined – extra work still felt like too much. But then she asked me to check whether Priya was still using the Fables World characters to help her with maths.
Honestly, I thought there was no chance. We hadn’t used the programme in months, and I assumed it had been forgotten. I even forgot to ask her. But one day, the question popped into my head, so I asked her, “Do you still use the Fables World characters?”
Priya had a think about it, then looked at me, thoughtfully and said;
“Yes I do! It’s the only way I can answer any multiplication or division questions.”
I was stunned; it had never left her. Without me realizing, the characters and techniques had become an ingrained part of how she thought about numbers. I had completely underestimated its impact.
The frustration and tears back then weren’t because Fables World didn’t work – they were because learning something new can be hard, especially for a child who faces so many challenges. But the real proof wasn’t in those difficult moments. It was in the fact that, even after stopping, she continued to rely on what she had learned.
Without Fables World, I don’t know how she would be managing these tests at all. I had assumed she was just getting through them somehow, but now I realize she had a secret weapon all along – one I hadn’t given enough credit to.
This experience has taught me something important: parents don’t always see the long-term impact of the things that help our children. We assume that if they’re not actively using a programme, it didn’t work. But sometimes, the things that make the biggest difference are the ones that quietly become part of who they are.
Fables World may not have been easy for us at the time, but it gave Priya something invaluable – an internal way of thinking about maths that is still helping her today. And that’s something I want other parents to know, because if I hadn’t asked, I never would have realized just how much it was still shaping her success.
If more people knew about Fables World, if more parents understood that the learning doesn’t stop when the sessions do, then maybe more children like Priya would have the chance to build those same, life-changing skills.
I’m so grateful that she had this foundation, and I wish I had realized sooner just how much it had stayed with her.
Names have been changed.
Image: Depositphotos
