Method and references
How AtyKids documents its content and guidance
Depending on the topic, AtyKids draws on official sources, recognized recommendations and relevant references, always distinguishing the territory, the nature of the information and its verification date. This page describes the method actually applied to the current content.
The principle
AtyKids draws a line between two surfaces. On one side, documented public content: the Glossary, the Guides and the ATLAS directory. Where relevant, this content states the institutional source it relies on, the relevant territory and the last verification date.
On the other side, the conversational answers of the Assistants in the private space. They help the adult understand, organize or prepare, never presented as a documentary reference nor as medical advice.
The point is not to impress. The point is to let the adult identify the nature of the information they read and decide for themselves.
A clear hierarchy of sources
Depending on the topic, AtyKids relies on sources of different nature. This hierarchy is not a rating: it states the actual nature of the source used.
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Official and regulatory sources
Statutes, ministries, administrations, public authorities, government bodies.
→ Rights, procedures, official schemes, regulations, institutions.
- U.S. Department of Education
- Éducation nationale (France)
- Quebec Ministry of Education
- Ontario Ministry of Education
- Service‑Public (France)
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Reference recommendations
Recommendations from recognized health authorities, reference education bodies, institutional professional societies.
→ Support guidance and recognized good‑practice frames.
- Haute Autorité de Santé (France)
- Ministries of education
- Institutional professional bodies
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Scientific literature
Systematic reviews, meta‑analyses, peer‑reviewed publications.
→ Clarify a specific point when robust and relevant literature exists.
- Systematic reviews
- Meta‑analyses
- Peer‑reviewed publications
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Recognized professional resources
Resources produced by professional bodies recognized in their field.
→ Complete a specific practical point when the previous tiers are not enough.
- Practical guides from professional bodies
- Resources from recognized federations
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Field and practical experience
Usage feedback and field experience, stated as such.
→ Everyday practical guidance, never presented as an obligation or as scientific proof.
- Guidance for preparing a school meeting
- Practical everyday adaptations
This hierarchy describes the nature of a source. It is never turned into a rating or a star system: a tier E source is not “less true” than a tier A one, it answers a different kind of question. For regulatory or institutional information we favour official sources where they exist; the other tiers are used when the topic calls for it and a relevant reference exists.
A source documents information, it does not validate AtyKids
Citing a ministry, a recommendation or a publication means the information comes from there. It does not mean the institution recommends AtyKids, that its authors endorse AtyKids, or that AtyKids has been validated by it. None of the sources cited on this site has assessed the platform.
Fact, explanation, suggestion: three registers not to be confused
A single answer can contain all three. Telling them apart is what lets you know what is binding, what is a reading, and what is simply worth trying.
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1. Documented fact
“The official text states…”
Rests on an identifiable source, with its territory and its verification date.
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2. Explanation
“In your situation, that concretely means…”
Puts the fact in context. It stays attached to the source, but it is already a reading.
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3. Suggestion
“You could try…”
A course of action to adapt. It is neither an obligation nor a sourced claim, and it does not need to be one to be useful.
A source tailored to each kind of information
Not all information has the same nature. AtyKids does not mix a right, a recommendation and a practical pointer.
- Rights and procedures
- Official or regulatory source for the relevant territory.
- School and educational schemes
- Ministry of education or reference educational body.
- Everyday support
- Recognized recommendations, relevant literature and practical adaptations identified as such.
- ATLAS · local resources
- Territorial and institutional data sources aggregated by an ATLAS‑specific methodology.
- Glossary · acronyms and terms
- Official source matching the territory of the scheme (France, United States, Canada, Costa Rica), with its jurisdiction when the scheme is provincial.
- Guides
- Documented combination: institutional source when it exists, completed by clearly identified practical guidance.
Territory matters
Information is not automatically international. A French scheme is not simply “translated” into English or Spanish and presented as valid elsewhere. This is one of AtyKids's founding principles.
For federal countries, the province or state is stated when relevant.
Some of the references currently used for Canada are specific to a province or a territory, Quebec and Ontario in particular. The jurisdiction concerned is stated whenever it matters.
- France
- United States
- Canada
- Costa Rica
Freshness of the information
A reference can change. When information depends on an institutional or regulatory frame, AtyKids states its last verification on the relevant page, next to the source. AtyKids does not promise an automatic update frequency it does not keep.
A source remains a source
When AtyKids cites an institution, a text or a publication, the source remains that institution, that text or that publication. The Assistants can help explain, organize or rephrase, but a conversational answer never replaces the documentary source.
Public content (Glossary, Guides, ATLAS) that relies on an institutional source cites that source. AtyKids never presents a conversational answer as a documentary authority.
Non‑medical framing
AtyKids does not make a diagnosis, does not give medical advice and never replaces a health professional, a teacher or a lawyer. The platform is aimed at the adult who supports a child. The Assistants and the Experts are not designed to be used by a child alone.
What about ATLAS?
ATLAS aggregates public sources of professional directories, facilities and schemes across the covered countries. Each resource is tied to its provenance and to the date the data was indexed.
The goal of ATLAS is to help find a plausible point of support nearby. It is not a quality directory: AtyKids does not certify the quality, availability or specializations of a given professional. Errors and inconsistencies can be reported to the team.
What you will see on a page
On a Glossary term or on a Guide anchored to an institutional source, three simple markers describe the information. A purely practical Guide (preparing a meeting, an everyday adaptation) is presented as such and does not display an institutional source.
- Relevant territory (for example France, United States, Canada, Costa Rica), and the province or state when the scheme depends on it.
- Official or institutional source, with title and link.
- Last verification date, next to the source.
Who produces the content
Content is collectively produced by the AtyKids editorial team. AtyKids does not fabricate experts, does not sign content with people who do not exist in the project, and does not present itself as “validated by” an authority that did not do so.
Updates to this page
This page evolves with the platform: a structural change to the method, the sources or the frames is written here. A reference can also fall out of date; when it does, it is reassessed and replaced, with no promised delay.