ONLINE TRAINING WITH CEs

Parents in the Play Therapy
Process

Learn to Engage Parents and Caregivers in the Play Therapy Process

June 25, 2022 | 8:00 am – 10:30 am Pacific Time | Online

ONLINE TRAINING WITH CEs

Parents in the Play Therapy
Process

Learn to Engage Parents and Caregivers in the Play Therapy Process

June 25, 2022 | 8:00 am – 10:30 am Pacific Time | Online

Have you ever struggled to effectively engage the parents/caregivers of your clients in the play therapy process?

Have you wondered what to say to parents about their child’s progress play therapy treatment without violating your client’s privacy?

Do you feel overwhelmed or frustrated when parents look at you and ask “why isn’t my child getting better?”

Have you been frustrated that you can’t seem to get parents to engage more fully in the treatment process and secretly wished maybe you could just work with the child and not their parents?

I’ve got the solution for you to successfully and confidently integrate parents fully in the play therapy process!

Engaging parents/caregivers in the play therapy process can be overwhelming and challenging if you don’t have an intentional plan. You can get lost in the treatment decision-making process and overwhelmed, and even frustrated and burned out.

It’s important to identify your expectations for parent engagement so you can create a plan that clearly identifies how parents/caregivers will be involved in the play therapy process.

I’m not a fan of the “drive through” parent sessions that often occur during the last “5 minutes” of your client’s session because …

❌ It’s never 5 minutes and often having a dedicated session to meet with parents will provide much better parent engagement in the change process so they can more effectively help their child.
❌ It doesn’t give you the privacy you need to fully collaborate with parents/caregivers and develop a strong therapeutic alliance with them.
❌ There’s no incentive for parents/caregivers to prioritize meeting with you so you can work together collaboratively to help their child.
❌ It doesn’t provide opportunities for you to teach parents/caregivers about co-regulation, help them change ineffective parenting strategies, and help them become the therapeutic agents of change for their child.

There’s a much better way to work with parents/caregivers and get more “buy-in” to use them as therapeutic agents of change for their children.

In this online, highly interactive training, you learn how to:

Create a plan that will work for you to engage parents in the play therapy process

Get even challenging parents/caregivers to engage in the change process

Help parents be the “skills coaches” and “therapeutic agent of change” for their child

Learn how to explain the play therapy process to parents/caregivers and how their child is doing without feeling like you’re violating your client’s privacy

What is
"THERAPEUTIC AGENT OF CHANGE?"

Therapeutic agents of change are the adults in the child’s life who have the ability to facilitate change in all areas of the child’s life. Children and adolescents do not have the power to facilitate change in their lives because grown-ups are in charge. Children and adolescents need adults in their life who can advocate for them and help them use their new skills in “real time.”

This is a critical need in the play therapy process so your clients can use the coping skills you’re teaching them when they really need it – during an emotional meltdown or anxiety attack. This is the reason they need their parents/caregivers to be actively involved in the play therapy process.

Parents in the
Play Therapy Process

When: June 25, 2022 from 8 am – 10:30 am Pacific time
(Make sure to adjust to your time zone)

Where: Online

Description:

Involving parents in the play therapy process has demonstrated significant treatment success for children and sustained positive changes for the child. And yet, integrating parents effectively in the play therapy process is often a struggle for many play therapists as they strive to find the best strategies for helping their young clients. This online, experiential training will help play therapists establish a framework for successfully including parents in the change process as therapeutic agents of change with their children. Play therapists will learn to establish therapeutic rapport with parents, learn how to communicate with them about their child’s progress, and create a framework for confidently integrating even challenging parents in the play therapy process.

Objectives:

Identify their goals for inclusion of parents in the play therapy process and when to include parents in the play therapy sessions
Explain barriers to successfully engaging parents in the play therapy change process and identify strategies to overcome these barriers
Explain the therapeutic powers of play to parents to help them become therapeutic agents of change for their child
Identify strategies for effective communication with parents about the play therapy process and progress while maintaining the child’s confidentiality

Who is appropriate for this training?

Play therapists, clinical social workers, counselors, psychologists, school social workers, school counselors, marriage and family therapists

Participants will attend virtually using Zoom
Participants will be limited to 40 people
Participants must keep their cameras on at all times during the training to ensure active participation in the training
Participants must pass a post quiz with at least 85% proficiency to be eligible for continuing education hours
Participants will complete an evaluation form after completing the training

2. 5 Continuing Education hours are available through the following organizations:

2.5 Contact Hours, APT Approved Provider #20-621 Play therapy credit may not be awarded to non-mental health professionals.

DUE TO COVID-19 HEALTH CONCERNS, THIS ONE TIME ONLINE EVENT HAS BEEN APPROVED BY APT FOR 2.5 CONTACT CE HOURS

NASW, Utah Chapter Category 1 and 3

For mental health professionals pursuing a Registered Play Therapy (RPT) credential, this training fits into Category 3: Play Therapy Skills and Methods.

Here’s the rationale for Category 3: the seminal and historically significant theories underlying this training is Child Centered Play Therapy/Humanistic because the use of the therapeutic relationship is critical for the change process. Ecosystemic/Prescriptive play therapy models provide a framework for integration of theories to individualize the interventions used to meet the needs of individual clients. This training uses these seminal and historically significant theories as the foundation for the inclusion of neuroscience to inform the treatment process and use interventions based on the needs of each client/family within a safe, strong therapeutic

Frequently Asked Questions

Who is appropriate for this training?

Play therapists, clinical social workers, counselors, psychologists, school social workers, school counselors, marriage and family therapists

What time is the training?

Trainings begin promptly at 8:00am Pacific time zone and access to the online training will be locked by 8:15am Pacific time zone to ensure participant attendance in its entirety. Please ensure you adjust training times for your time zone.

What is your Cancellation Policy?

Written communication to Cathi Spooner at cathispooner@gmail.com is required no later than midnight on 06/18/2022. No refunds will be given after that date.

Is the training approved for CE hours?

Yes! 2. 5 Continuing Education hours are available through the following organizations:

NASW, Utah Chapter Category 1 and 3.

Click here for the version of the training without CEs.

Will the training be recorded?

Yes, and it will not be available for replay due to requirements for Continuing Education Hours.

By registering for this training, you are giving permission for Renewing Hearts Counseling & Consulting (RHCC) to use any photographs (screenshots) that are taken at the event containing your likeness for as long as RHCC deems appropriate and desirable. Photographs may be used on the RHCC website, social media pages, and/or newsletter for any purpose.

By completing the registration, you are also consenting to waive any rights to the photographs indefinitely. You also agree to allow your feedback and comments in the chat and evaluation form may also be used for future promotions as deemed appropriate and desirable by RHCC. If you do not wish to have your photo used, it is your responsibility to notify RHCC of your request to be omitted.

It is my greatest desire to help families heal by empowering mental health professionals to learn how to integrate play therapy and expressive arts using the therapeutic powers of play into clinical practice with confidence.

Cathi Spooner
LCSW, RPT-S

..............

"Cathi knows SO much about neurobiology, sometimes I get lost during that part, but it is also so informative and important to know the underlying process of everything.

A takeaway for me that was really important was the clinical decision making piece that I need to let parents know what to expect and what is expected of them and be very purposeful in how and when I do or don't use them"