Play therapy is a treatment for children who are struggling with emotional issues. It’s not just an activity, it’s a way of communicating with children on their level and in their language to help them work through what they’re feeling. Play therapists use toys, art supplies, games, sand trays and other props to facilitate the play process. Read on for more information about this process! In this blog, we’ll help you find a suitable online play therapy course.
What is Play Therapy?
What is play therapy?
Play therapy is a type of psychotherapy that uses some form of play, whether it be verbal or symbolic, to help people explore some difficult topics in their lives.
Play therapy taps into the fun and resilience within the child instead of focusing on symptoms. Instead of seeing themselves as struggling with something painful, children will play out any broad problem they are working through which might include school difficulties, aggression towards family members or friends, new siblings, power struggles with parents . . . It’s intuitive for kids because this is what they do naturally. They can think about problems creatively by “playing” them out rather than just talking about them inside their heads where you don’t know what’s happening.
Play Therapy is a type of psychotherapy that uses play and games to help children work through their problems. There are many benefits to using Play Therapy, such as it being low cost, easily accessible, and the therapist can apply the techniques they learn on themselves.
While there are many play therapy courses available online for therapists who want to study Play Therapy, we recommend spending less time on the internet by taking a look at our online play therapy course list below.
1- University of Roehampton’s Foundation Course in Play Therapy
This play therapy course will cover the areas as advertised and it will endeavor to provide as near as possible the experiential element as the face-to-face course. The course consists of experimental workshops, seminars and lectures, and an assessment session in which the attendees present their reflective log to observe their psychological journey.
The course is for a limited amount of people but you can join the class if you are lucky.
For further information: University of Roehampton website.
2- Play Therapy United Kingdom
Play Therapy United Kingdom provides accredited courses that help you with your journey as a psychologist. Their play therapy courses are comprehensive, coherent, and rich in content. One of the biggest pluses of this course is that it enables you to get a certificate that is accredited by highly respected organizations such as PTI.
For further information on their courses: Play Therapy United Kingdom website.
3-Play Therapy Online Training Academy
The Play Therapy Online Training Academy offers the opportunity to engage with the healing, heartful, and evidence-based world of Child-Centered Play Therapy, a more humanistic form of counseling and psychotherapy for children. In the play therapy course, you will learn about the ideas, theories, skills, and practices of this Play Therapy approach from some of the experts in the field. You have the chance of hearing case presentations and many practical examples from the therapeutic playroom.
Many practices from this Play Therapy approach are focused on empathy and the development of safety and trust and can be integrated very successfully into other work roles and relationships with children.
For further information on their classes: Play Therapy Online Training Academy website.
4- Centre of Excellence’s Play Therapy Course
This course is suitable for beginner play therapists, child counsellors, experienced therapists who want play therapy in their areas of expertise as well, or a parent whose child is about to undergo, or who already is undergoing play therapy.
In this course you will learn different types of play therapies such as dramatic roleplay, art and crafts, storytelling and how to set up a suitable environment for each play therapy.
You can find more information on their courses here.
5- The Play Strong Institute
This online play therapy course is for everyone whether you have a Master’s degree or have a Ph.D. in psychology or are a newcomer in the mental health area… The Child-Centered Play Therapy Certificate Program is designed for graduate students and mental health professionals at all skill levels and can be used toward completion of up to 150 hours of Play Therapy education required to become a Registered Play Therapist.
For more in-depth information: The Play Strong Institute website.
With such a variety of options, it can be difficult to figure out which one is the right fit. Here are some important questions you should ask yourself before signing up for an online play therapy course: What type of training do I want? What kind of experience or background does this provider have in play therapy and working with children and families? How much time will I need to commit every week (or month)? Is there any financial investment required?
We tried to help you through these choices so that you can make the most informed choice possible when choosing an online play therapist course. There’s no shame in asking for advice–especially when it comes to mental health.
