Written by two authors with a combined experience of more than fifty years in the residential treatment of severely aggressive-and often traumatized-children, this book has proven invaluable to new as well as seasoned child practitioners. The chapters cover the nuts and bolts of play therapy with this extremely challenging clinical population, including the therapeutic alliance, aims of play therapy with aggressive children, setting limits on destructive and obtrusive behaviors, typical play themes of aggressive children, and developing distancing and displacement through playful action and through teaching, modeling, and structuring action play. Other chapters cover such topics as: how to create more mature defenses and calming strategies; the role of interpretation; the use of spontaneous drawings as a bridge to fantasy play; specific drawing techniques to create access to the inner world of children; how to teach and model pro-social skills and the language of feeling; and how to facilitate affect expression and modulation, contained reenactment of trauma, and children's ability to mourn tangible as well as intangible, unacknowledged and invisible losses. Later chapters cover the therapeutic process and techniques to facilitate termination. The authors introduce the Play Therapy Decision Grid, which is intended to guide the therapist into the levels of therapy best suited for the child at any given point based on the child's resources and the anxiety engendered by the therapy.

Play Therapy Primary Areas:

• Seminal / Historically Significant Theories
• Skills and Methods
• Special Topics
  

Please be advised that in an effort to stay current with learning material, this test will no longer be available after Friday, March 1, 2019. Should you have any questions, please contact the APT office. 

Learning Objectives:

• Use fast-paced, structured games designed/selected for the treatment of characteristics of children with ADHD.
• Conduct directive games which empower players, improve self-esteem, and confidence.
• Discuss positive reinforcement methods effective with children with short-attention span.
• Describe how games can be structured to children's needs to learn social skills and values.
• Explain a four-step process to properly terminate a therapeutic group.

Learning Objectives:

• Describe how to put in place a play therapy private practice business plan.
• Compare how play therapy may be different from other child therapies.
• Explain the importance of play therapy history, guidelines, research and paper on touch in private practice.
• Discuss the value of comprehensive session documentation when conduction a play therapy private practice.
• List the best practice procedures including: practice handbook; business associates contract; emergency response team specifics and more.

Learning Objectives:

• Describe how to create a ""safe and protected space"" for children in the play therapy process.
• Identify how to model a symbolic attitude.
• Identify how to execute effective verbal interpretations.

Please be advised that in an effort to stay current with learning material, this test will no longer be available after Friday, March 1, 2019. Should you have any questions, please contact the APT office. 

Learning Objectives:

• Analyze the synergetic relationship between Animal Assisted Therapy and Play Therapy.
• Identify the benefits of including PAPT in their mental health practice.
• Discuss the application of theoretical underpinnings to a PAPT modality.
• Write a treatment plan for PAPT application.
• Describe the roles of a therapy dog in PAPT.

Please be advised that in an effort to stay current with learning material, this test will no longer be available after Friday, March 1, 2019. Should you have any questions, please contact the APT office. 

Learning Objectives:

• Describe the historical perspective of family therapy and play therapy.
• Discuss the rationale for integrating family and play therapy.
• Describe Family Puppet Interviews and The Mutual Story-Telling Technique.
• Identify the benefits of expressive arts.
• Describe 3 family art therapy techniques.
• List 4 play techniques to use with children and families.

Please be advised that in an effort to stay current with learning material, this test will no longer be available after Friday, March 1, 2019. Should you have any questions, please contact the APT office. 

Learning Objectives:

• Explain how specific play therapy approaches are used to help children cope with and overcome a broad range of problems that children experience.
• List current statistical data on the effectiveness of certain play therapy approaches.
• Identify DSM-IV-TR diagnoses that are associated with presenting problems commonly encountered by play therapists.

Learning Objectives:

• Explain the basic criteria for conducting play therapy supervision.
• Discuss how to implement forms for supervision use.
• Compare the differences between ethical and legal considerations when conducting play therapy supervision.
• Identify the essential components of quality supervision.
• Identify strategies for competent supervision.

Please be advised that in an effort to stay current with learning material, this test will no longer be available after Friday, March 1, 2019. Should you have any questions, please contact the APT office. 

Learning Objectives:

• Compare and contrast the development of disorders among a wide range of theoretical approaches including, child centered, psychoanalytic and cognitive-behavioral play therapy theories.
• Describe play therapy interventions that correspond to 3 different theoretical orientations.
• Compare and contrast the role of the play therapist across theoretical approaches.

Please be advised that in an effort to stay current with learning material, this test will no longer be available after Friday, March 1, 2019. Should you have any questions, please contact the APT office. 

Learning Objectives:

• Describe significant developments in the history of play therapy.
• Describe the major theoretical approaches to play therapy.
• List at least 4 factors to consider when creating an effective space for therapeutic play.
• Describe the basic skills in play therapy which are consistent across theoretical approaches.
• Identify at least 4 advanced skills in play therapy.
• Discuss the importance of being culturally sensitive and aware.
• Decribe role play in play therapy.