Play Therapy
IUPUI Seminar Class
March 19, 2007
Megan Pritchard
“We are never more fully alive,
more completely ourselves, or
more deeply engrossed in
anything than when we are
playing” –Charles Schaefer
Overview of Play Therapy
• Video: Why Play Therapy?
(www.a4pt.org)
“We are never more fully alive, more
completely ourselves, or more deeply
engrossed in anything than when we are
playing” –Charles Schaefer
Definition of Play
Therapy
• Play therapy is the systematic use of a
theoretical model to establish an
interpersonal process wherein trained play
therapist use the therapeutic powers of
play to help clients prevent or resolve
psychological difficulties and achieve
optimal growth and development.
(Association for Play Therapy Board,
March 1997)
Play Therapy Activity
Types of Play Therapy
• Directive Play Therapy
• Non-Directive Play Therapy
Theories of Play Therapy
• Directive
–
–
–
–
• Non-Directive
Cognitive behavioral
– Child-centered
Gestalt
– Jungian
Developmental
– Psychoanalytic
SFBT
-Adlerian-Filial-
Source: InAPT conference 2005
Methods of Play Therapy
•
•
•
•
Sand Tray
Imaginative Play
Puppet Play
Art/Crafts
Play Therapy Activity
Sand Tray
Group Sand Tray
Toys Needed for Play
Therapy Room
• Scary toys
– Client’s can use
these to deal with
fears
– Plastic monsters,
snakes, bugs, bears,
lions, dinosaurs
• Nurturing Toys
– Client’s can use
these to play out
family relationships
and events
– Doll house, dolls,
puppets, baby dolls,
baby doll supplies,
kitchen set
Source: InAPT conference 2005
Toys Needed for Play
Therapy Room
• Aggressive Toys
– Clients use these to
express anger and
aggression and
explore power and
control issues
– Guns, play knives,
hammer and nails,
toy soldiers,
punching bag
• Expressive Toys
– Clients use these to
explore
relationships,
express feelings,
deal with
problem/solution
– Crayons, paper,
scissors, paint,
craft items.
Source: InAPT conference 2005
Toys Needed for Play
Therapy Room
• Pretend/Fantasy Toys
– Clients can use these to explore
different roles, hidden feelings, and
alternative behaviors
– Masks, hats, doctor’s kit, zoo and farm
animals, building materials, jewelry
Source: InAPT conference 2005
Support for Play Therapy
in the Schools
• Play an effective treatment for children’s
problems (Ray et. Al., 2001)(Cohen, 1977)(Johnson
et. Al., 1997) (Post, 1999)
– Children’s natural language is play. Play is a
developmentally appropriate way that children express
themselves. (Axline and Landreth)
– Play is a natural way for children to express
feelings/emotions (Drewes)
– Many children learn through hands-on activities and
movement (Gardner’s Theory of Multiple Intelligences)
Support for Play Therapy
in the Schools (cont.)
• Play therapy matches with Piaget’s theory of
cognitive development (Ray et. Al, 2005)
– Preoperational stage (ages 2-7): language skills are not
as developed as internal awareness
– Concrete Operations Stage (ages 8-11): limits in
abstract reasoning- play helps bridge gap between
concrete experience and abstract thought
• Practical applications in the school
– Play therapy can be used to assist in GEIS and IEPs to
inform classroom observations and social-emotional
analysis (Drewes)
Challenges Related to Play
Therapy in the Schools
• Lack of time available with students in a school
setting (Ray et. Al., 2005)
– Efficacy even greater when parents are involved and the
number of sessions ranges from 30-35 (Leblanc &
Ritchie, 2001)
• Lack of training in play therapy for school
counselors (Ray et. Al., 2005)
• Cost of play materials (Drewes)
• Non-traditional: need to advocate for it- use
research and concrete explanation (Drewes)
Solution Focused Brief
Therapy-Play Therapy
Play therapy techniques for
SFBT
–
–
–
–
client goal
miracle question
relationship question
instances/exception
– scaling
– unfinished business
– message
How to become a Registered Play
Therapist (RPT)
(Through The International Association for Play Therapy)
• Application process through APT
• Academic Requirement– Earn a Masters degree in a medical
or mental health profession and 150 clock hours of
instruction in play therapy.
– 30 of the 150 hours may be gained via distance learning (APT
offers distance learning coursework)
– APT Annual Conference training sessions: approx. 38 hours
– Graduate coursework
– Indianapolis Approved Providers of training:
• Indiana Association for Play Therapy
(Contact: Phyllis Brown, indianaapt@yahoo.com)
• Play Journeys, Inc.
(Contact: Patty Scanlon, pscanlon@playjourneys.com)
Source: Association for Play Therapy, Inc.,
www.a4pt.org
How to become a Registered Play
Therapist (RPT), cont.
(Through The International Association for Play Therapy)
• Clinical Requirement– Obtain two years
(2,000 hours) of clinical experience (one
year post-Masters)
– minimum of 500 hours of supervised play
therapy experience
– document supervision of both general and Play
Therapy clinical experience
• Licensure Requirement– Be licensed or
certified in primary mental health field.
Source: Association for Play Therapy, Inc.,
www.a4pt.org
Resources for Additional
Information
• Association for Play Therapy, Inc. Website:
http://www.a4pt.org/
• School-Based Play Therapy, Drewes, Carey, & Schaefer
• The Handbook of Group Play Therapy, Sweeney & Homeyer
• Leblanc, M. & Ritchie, M. (2001), A meta-analysis of play
therapy outcomes. Counseling Psychology Quarterly, 14(2),
149-163.
• Hall, T.M., Gerard Kaduson, H., & Schaefer, C.E. (2002).
Fifteen effective play therapy techniques. Professional
Psychology: Research and Practice, 33(6), 515-522.
• Ray, D.C., Armstrong, S.A., Warren, E.S. & Balkin, R.S.
(2005). Play therapy practices among elementary school
counselors, 8(4), 360-365.
Questions?
Play Therapy Activity