Description:

Child-centered play therapy is a modality that utilizes the child’s natural language of play and the therapeutic relationship to help a child overcome psychosocial, behavioral, relational, and emotional challenges. This training will help play therapists understand the theory and principles behind child-centered play therapy as well as the categories of play therapist responses and the ACT model of limit setting during sessions. Participants will be introduced to the materials that are recommended for a well-equipped play therapy room based on child-centered play therapy theory. Implementation of child-centered play therapy with children and adolescents will be discussed, as will adaptations that encourage connections with adolescents in particular.

 Learning Objectives:

Upon successful completion of this workshop, participants will be able to:

1. Identify the eight core principles of child-centered play therapy outlined by Virginia Axline
2. Identify and demonstrate the nine categories of responses primarily utilized in child-centered play therapy
3. Describe the recommended playroom materials in a child-centered play therapy session
4. Describe at least 3 adaptations to consider for a child-centered play therapy space to encourage therapeutic connections with adolescents