← Body World · 24-Card Kit

The Body Deck.

Twenty-four cards. Four suits — Hear, Care, Boundary, Honor. Print, cut, carry. Pull one a week. The home you live in is yours; this is how you tend it.

Suit One · Hear · Cards 01-06 · listen to the body
01 · Hear
The body-check.
Three times a day, stop. Ask: what does my body feel and where? Tightness, hunger, tired, butterflies, excited. Just noticing. 30 seconds.
02 · Hear
Feelings live in the body.
Scared lives in your chest. Sad lives in your throat. Angry lives in your jaw. Excited lives in your arms. Learn the map — it's yours.
03 · Hear
Tired isn't bad behavior.
When you're grumpy, the question is often "am I tired?" or "am I hungry?" The body was telling you first. Hear it.
04 · Hear
Thirsty is invisible.
Most kids walk around thirsty without knowing it. Water solves more than you'd guess. Drink some now.
05 · Hear
When pain says "tell."
Pain that won't go away. A weird spot. A "this doesn't feel right" feeling. Tell a grown-up. Don't wait to see.
06 · Hear
The slow-breath reset.
When scared or about to cry or just wound-up: 4 seconds breathing in, 6 seconds breathing out, 5 times. Your body has a calm-down button. This is it.
Suit Two · Care · Cards 07-12 · tend the home you live in
07 · Care
Water, a lot.
More than you think. Most kids walk around half-thirsty. Carry a bottle. Refill it. Repeat.
08 · Care
Sleep, plenty.
9-11 hours, depending on your age. Brain organizes, body grows, mood resets. The kid who sleeps enough is sharper at almost everything.
09 · Care
Move every day.
Run. Climb. Bike. Dance. Jump. Walk. Not for a sport — just because the body wants to move. An hour, somewhere.
10 · Care
Real food, sometimes.
Not all the time. But fruit, vegetables, eggs, beans, fish, meat, real bread — more often than the packaged stuff. The body uses what you feed it.
11 · Care
Sunlight and outside.
20-30 minutes a day, outdoors. The body needs the light; the brain needs the space. Screens don't count for this one.
12 · Care
Checkups.
Once a year at the doctor. Twice a year at the dentist. Nothing fancy. Catches small things before they get big.
Suit Three · Boundary · Cards 13-18 · my body, my call
13 · Boundary
Your body is yours.
Not your parents'. Not your teacher's. Not anyone's. Yours. That's the first rule.
14 · Boundary
"No" is a full sentence.
No hug if you don't want one. No tickle. No "let me see..." No touch you don't want. Practice on small stuff so it's ready for big stuff.
15 · Boundary
Real adults don't get mad about "no."
When you say no to a touch, trustworthy adults respect it. Adults who get mad about it — that's the signal to tell another trusted adult.
16 · Boundary
No body-secrets.
If anyone — anyone — asks you to keep a touch secret, that's the signal. Tell someone else right away. You will not be in trouble.
17 · Boundary
Three trusted adults.
Pick three. Parent, grandparent, teacher, coach, family friend, school counselor. Write the names. If anything ever feels wrong — go to one of them.
18 · Boundary
Childhelp is a backup.
If you can't reach a trusted adult: 1-800-422-4453. It's free. It's for kids. They'll listen. Write the number somewhere.
Suit Four · Honor · Cards 19-24 · the body you'll keep growing into
19 · Honor
Real names of body parts.
Learn them. Use them. The kid who can say the real name gets help faster than the kid who only knows nicknames. The names aren't bad words.
20 · Honor
Different bodies grow differently.
You and your friend won't grow at the same time. Comparing isn't useful. Your body is on its own schedule. That's normal.
21 · Honor
Skip the body-shamer.
Sibling, cousin, kid at school, adult who should know better. Their opinion of your body isn't the truth about your body. Don't carry their words.
22 · Honor
The body that's changing.
Your body will change a lot in the next 10 years. Some of it will feel weird. All of it is normal. Ask trusted adults the questions you're wondering about.
23 · Honor
Tough kids tell.
Hiding pain doesn't make you tough. Telling about real pain so it can be checked — that's what tough looks like.
24 · Honor
The 80-year-old read.
The 80-year-old version of you wants you to take care of this body now. The home you build at 9 is the home you live in at 80. Start the habits early.