HBEC 3303 Play Therapy in Early Childhood Education Assignment

Introduction on Play Therapy

In recent years a growing number of noted mental health professionals have observed that
play is as important to human happiness and wellbeing as love and work. Some of the greatest
thinkers of all time, have reflected on why play is so fundamental in our lives. The following are
some of the many benefits of play that have been described by play theorists. Sometimes a child
will start to develop patterns of behaviour that may be causing disruption to their lives and to the
lives of those around them. Parents, carers and teachers may recognise signs such as excessive
anger, fear or worry that may be affecting a child's development and their ability to get along
with their family and friends at school.
While adults experiencing emotional and behavioural difficulties can seek help in the
form talking therapies, children tend to find this therapeutic setting threatening and almost like
an interrogation. As a result, play therapy is used to help children communicate at their own level
and at their own pace. This enables them to understand confused feelings and upsetting
experiences that they haven't yet had a chance to process.
Play therapy is a type of therapy that helps children to express themselves, explore their
thoughts and feelings, and make sense of their life experiences. Play is a natural activity of
learning, exploration and communication for children, and so the medium is considered highly
effective for helping children to 'play out' what they may find difficult to put into words. Play
therapists will work with children of all ages in a safe and trusting environment to help shift
perspectives of difficult experiences and increase self-esteem and confidence. They may work as
part of a team or independently, and may suggest a referral for additional professional support as
part of therapy. The main aim of a play therapist is to equip children with adaptive behaviours
and better coping mechanisms for everyday life. This is to help them develop a more positive
view of their place in the world.
Initially developed in the turn of the 20th century, today play therapy refers to a large
number of treatment methods, all applying the therapeutic benefits of play. Play therapy differs
from regular play in that the therapist helps children to address and resolve their own problems.
Play therapy builds on the natural way that children learn about themselves and their

relationships in the world around them. Through play therapy, children learn to communicate
with others, express feelings, modify behavior, develop problem-solving skills, and learn a
variety of ways of relating to others. Play provides a safe psychological distance from their
problems and allows expression of thoughts and feelings appropriate to their development.
Children are referred for play therapy to resolve their problems. Often, children have
used up their own problem solving tools, and they misbehave, may act out at home, with friends,
and at school. Play therapy allows trained mental health practitioners who specialize in play
therapy, to assess and understand children's play. Further, play therapy is utilized to help children
cope with difficult emotions and find solutions to problems. By confronting problems in the
clinical Play Therapy setting, children find healthier solutions. Play therapy allows children to
change the way they think about, feel toward, and resolve their concerns. Even the most
troubling problems can be confronted in play therapy and lasting resolutions can be discovered,
rehearsed, mastered and adapted into lifelong strategies.
Benefits of Play Therapy
Play therapy treatment plans have been utilized as the primary intervention or as an
adjunctive therapy for multiple Mental Health Conditions and Concerns, e.g. anger management,
grief and loss, divorce and family dissolution, and crisis and trauma, and for modification of
Behavioral Disorders, e.g. anxiety, depression, attention deficit hyperactivity (ADHD), autism or
pervasive developmental, academic and social developmental, physical and learning disabilities,
and conduct disorders.
Research supports the effectiveness of play therapy with children experiencing a wide
variety of social, emotional, behavioral, and learning problems, including: children whose
problems are related to life stressors, such as divorce, death, relocation, hospitalization, chronic
illness, assimilate stressful experiences, physical and sexual abuse, domestic violence, and
natural disasters. Play therapy helps children:

Become more responsible for behaviors and develop more successful strategies.
Develop new and creative solutions to problems.
Develop respect and acceptance of self and others.
Learn to experience and express emotion.
Cultivate empathy and respect for thoughts and feelings of others.

Learn new social skills and relational skills with family.

Develop self-efficacy and thus a better assuredness about their abilities.
Meta-analytic reviews of over 100 play therapy outcome studies have found that the over-

all treatment effect of play therapy ranges from moderate to high positive effects. Play therapy
has proven equally effective across age, gender, and presenting problem. Additionally, positive
treatment effects were found to be greatest when there was a parent actively involved in the
child's treatment.
Ultimately, play therapy helps to facilitate healing and the development of new patterns
of behaviour and thinking that enables children to be more resilient in everyday life. By helping
to free children from negative experiences and feelings that block their learning and
development, play therapy allows them to see their world in a more positive light.

Some of the specific benefits children can gain from play therapy include:
Reduced anxiety about traumatic events.
Improved confidence and a sense of competence.
Better able to form healthy bonds in relationships.
Improved ability to trust themselves and others.
Enhanced creativity and playfulness.

Play Therapy Process

Play therapy involves a series of sessions - usually 30 to 45 minutes long - where a
therapist will meet with a child to focus solely on their needs and the medium of play. Some
therapists may have experience working with siblings or groups of children but one-to-one
sessions tend to be the most common form of play therapy.
The first session will typically involve an assessment, in which the child's parent or carer
talks to the therapist about their concerns. The therapist will analyse the child's strengths and
difficulties, as well as their history in order to identify what stresses the child has been through
so they can help them make sense of it. Information may also be required from the child's school
and other significant adults in their lives.
Future sessions will usually be held weekly at the same place and time - either at the
child's home, school or at a clinic. This consistency helps to build a trusting relationship between

the therapist and child, and thus improves the chances of effective treatment. If sessions are
missed it may disrupt a child's progress.
Sessions involve a large selection of play materials provided by the play therapist. These
resources will consist of toys like small figures and animals, sand and water, musical
instruments, dressing up props, puppets, clay, books and art and craft materials. Rather than
encouraging the child to use verbal explanations of what is troubling them, the therapist will help
them to express difficult thoughts and feelings through the metaphors of play. This will involve
using a range of techniques that help children to become aware of what they are feeling and
provide opportunities for them to express these. Awareness is an important part of play therapy
because without awareness change cannot take place.

Some of the techniques used in play therapy are:

creative visualisation
therapeutic storytelling
sculpturing
role play
dance and movement
drawing
For this process to be effective, the therapist must work on building a strong therapeutic

relationship with the child. It is important that children feel comfortable, safe and respected in
play therapy so that they can play confidently and feel at ease sharing their intimate feelings. It is
also crucial that the child understands the therapist is accepting of them and supportive
throughout the whole process. Ultimately this positive relationship will foster the necessary
corrective experience needed to promote cognitive development and help children to resolve
inner conflicts and develop new patterns of behaviour and thinking.
Types of Play Therapy
One of the most common types of play therapy for children is child-based therapy, in
which a therapist and a child work alone. This is often used if there is a concern about the parents
or abuse in the family, but can also be done simply to make the child feel more comfortable. It
can be used to treat behavioral problems, anxiety, Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) and
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD),
autism, and the effects of abuse.

Another commonly used technique includes the participation of the child's father, mother,
siblings, or other family members. This is called family-based therapy or filial therapy, and is
often used when children experience severe separation anxiety or when certain kinds of abuse are
possible. The therapist may not always be directly involved in filial therapy sessions, but almost
always watches them and discusses the positive and negative points with the parents afterwards.
This can be as helpful for parents as for children, since they can learn parenting skills and better
their relationship with the child. Classic filial therapy focuses on four main areas which are
structuring, empathic listening, child-centered imaginary play, and limit-setting. However, each
session is typically tailored to the family's specific needs.

An additional type of play therapy for children is group-based therapy. During these
sessions, a large group of children plays together while the therapist watches and sometimes
participates. This is meant to help build better social skills and self-esteem. It can also help
therapists to treat individual children by letting them observe how the child interacts with others.
It's sometimes used when a child would feel too intimidated to work with a therapist alone, but
can also be used as a matter of preference or convenience.
Directive and Non-Directive
Most types of play therapy for children can be done either in a directive or a nondirective manner. The main difference between these is therapist's level of involvement. Both
start with the therapist suggesting a general topic or activity, but in directive play therapy, the
therapist often asks the child questions throughout the session, encourages him to talk more
about certain topics, or participates in activities with the child. In non-directive therapy, the
therapist generally just watches the child, and then interprets the results of the activity, like a
drawing.
Generally speaking, directive therapy is seen as a Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT),
focusing on behavior and conscious actions, while non-directive therapy is often categorized as a
psychodynamic theory. This means that it focuses on unconscious actions and beliefs. Both can
be used to treat a variety of conditions, but directive therapy is often used with trauma victims,
while non-directive therapy may be used to help with behavioral problems. There's no hard and
fast rule though, and both therapies have been shown to be effective with many issues.

Materials and Activities

Many different materials and activities can be incorporated into play therapy, some more
verbal and others more hands-on. One of the most classic activities is sand play. During sand
play sessions, the child is encouraged to play with small objects or toys in a tray of sand, and the
therapist observes the way in which the he plays, including which objects he uses and what he
does with them. After watching a while, a therapist might ask the child to talk about why he
chose to do certain things, like drawing a line between one toy and all the others. Other therapists
might just observe him and then draw conclusions about his state of mind.
Therapists also commonly encourage children to use puppets or toys that represent
themselves to talk, since they often find it easier to face uncomfortable topics if they can distance
themselves. Another technique that might be used to help an anxious child is blowing bubbles. In
this activity, the therapist and the child blow bubbles together, and the child learns to take deep,
slow breaths just as if he were blowing a big bubble when he feels anxious. There's no
definitive roster of activities that therapists can choose from, and some design their own
techniques. All activities are generally tailored to suit the child in the session.
Case Discussion
In the case of Megan, a five-year-old girl is prone to excessive temper tantrums, bouts of
crying and innate distrust of people. As a child therapist, the type of play therapy that I would
choose is materials and activities play therapy. I would engage the girl in an activity that she
likes to do such as playing puppet shows.
First of all, I would like to establish a good relationship with the girls. Establishing a
connection and trust between the girl and me will allow us to communicate more. I must develop
a warm and friendly relationship with the child. While she is engaging in the puppet play, she
will automatically play her role as the puppet. From the talk and conversation, we could
understand and evaluate her thinking. No matter what she says or thinks, I have to accept the
child as she or is. Meanwhile, I will continue to allow the girl to feel comfortable by being a part
of puppet show. It will establish a feeling of permission in the relationship so that the child feels
free to express his or her feelings completely.

During the process, I have to be alert and sensitive on the girls reaction. If she starts to
feel uncomfortable or bored, I will change it to another more interesting cartoon characters. If it
does not improve the condition, I will change the materials or activities until the girl feels
comfortable to play with. By doing so, she will not feel that it is a question and answer session.
She will feel free to respond without any fear or cautious. It is alert to recognize the feelings the
child is expressing and reflects these feelings back in such a manner that the child gains insight
into her behavior. During the treatment session, I will throw out some simple questions to her. I
have to maintain a deep respect for the childs ability to solve her problems and gives the child
the opportunity to do so. The responsibility to make choices and to institute change is the childs.
Furthermore, I will not attempt to direct the girls actions or conversations in any manner.
The child leads the way, I as the therapist follows. I understand that the therapy will take long
hours. Thus, I do not hurry the therapy along. As a therapist, I recognize it is a gradual process. I
will only establish those limitations necessary to anchor the therapy to the world of reality and to
make the child aware of her responsibility in the relationship (i.e. safety and other important
boundaries).
By the end of the therapy, I shall guide the child to adopt some of the good habits. She
would get to know on the better way to express her thought and feelings. I do not have any
expectation on her progress. It is a gradual process. There will be several session to follow up on
the girls condition and improvement. Last but not least, patience is essential for a therapist.
Conclusion
Play is a fun, enjoyable activity that elevates our spirits and brightens our outlook on life.
It expands self-expression, self-knowledge, self-actualization and self-efficacy. Play relieves
feelings of stress and boredom, connects us to people in a positive way, stimulates creative
thinking and exploration, regulates our emotions, and boosts our ego. In addition, play allows us
to practice skills and roles needed for survival. Learning and development are best fostered
through play.
Play therapy is a structured, theoretically based approach to therapy that builds on the
normal communicative and learning processes of children. The curative powers inherent in play
are used in many ways. Therapists strategically utilize play therapy to help children express what

is troubling them when they do not have the verbal language to express their thoughts and
feelings. In play therapy, toys are like the child's words and play is the child's language. Through
play, therapists may help children learn more adaptive behaviors when there are emotional or
social skills deficits. The positive relationship that develops between therapist and child during
play therapy sessions can provide a corrective emotional experience necessary for healing. Play
therapy may also be used to promote cognitive development and provide insight about and
resolution of inner conflicts or dysfunctional thinking in the child.
In a nutshell, play therapy plays an important role in early childhood education. In order
to make sure that the children is benefited from the play therapy, parents, teachers and therapist
have to work together to make it a success one.

Reference
1. Bratton, S., Ray, D., & Rhine, T. (2005). The efficacy of play therapy with children: A
meta-analytic review of treatment outcomes. Journal of Professional Psychology
Research and Practice, 36(4), 376-390. Mary Ann Kohl. (2008). Fostering Creativity. The
Professional Resource for Teachers and Parents.
2. Carmichael, K. D. (2006). Play therapy: An introduction. Glenview, IL: Prentice Hall.
3. Guerney, L. (2001). Child centered play therapy. International Journal of Play Therapy.
10(2), 13-31.
4. Webb, N. (2003). Play and expressive therapies to help bereaved children: Individual,
family, and group treatment. Smith College Studies in Social Work. 73(3), 405-422.
5. Schaefer, C.E., Kelly-Zion, S., McCormick, J., & Ohnogi, A. (2008). Play therapy for

very young children. Lanham, Maryland: Jason Aronson.