9 Engaging Play Therapy Activities to Enrich Your Client Sessions

Play is crucial for children’s development, helping them acquire important life skills like problem-solving, managing emotions, communicating, and setting boundaries. Children who have faced traumatic experiences may struggle with traditional therapeutic approaches. To learn more, keep reading for 9 Play Therapy exercises that you can implement in therapy sessions.

Play therapy is an appropriate treatment frequently utilized for children and adolescents facing various mental health challenges. Through this method, therapists can assist clients in preventing or addressing mental health issues that impair their growth or emotional health.

In play therapy, mental health professionals adjust their language and body language to resonate with their clients. It often involves encouraging clients to explore, comprehend, and embrace their emotions using different toys and play methods.

The development of play therapy has been influenced by key figures like Jean Piaget, Anna Freud, and Melanie Klein. Piaget identified three types of play: practice, symbolic, and social. Practice play starts in the first few months of life, symbolic play generally begins around age two, and social play occurs between ages seven and eleven. His studies indicated that children under ten often lack the cognitive abilities to grasp complicated issues, feelings, and motivations. Play therapy meets children at their development level while providing necessary support for their mental health.

While there are various techniques involved in play therapy, main categories include construction toys, coordination-enhancing toys, mimetic play, and pretend play. Energetic play may involve exploratory activities and organized sports.

Check out our Play Therapy Worksheets

Mental Health Issues That Can Benefit from Play Therapy

Play therapy can effectively assist children coping with diverse mental health issues and situations, such as transitioning through divorce, loss, welcoming new family members, or relocating homes or schools. It can also aid children grappling with emotional regulation and behavioral challenges like aggression and tantrums.

This therapeutic approach is often utilized for children who have been exposed to trauma, including domestic violence, sexual or physical abuse, neglect, and emotional maltreatment. It can also help children facing medical issues or procedures by alleviating associated fears and anxieties. Lastly, it’s beneficial for children with developmental disorders like autism spectrum disorder and Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD).

Research supports the effectiveness of play therapy for these concerns. For instance, one study showed that preschoolers participating in play therapy displayed marked enhancement in communication and problem-solving abilities. Another study involving children with Type 1 diabetes revealed a decrease in anxiety regarding their physical symptoms.

Play Therapy Activities for Trauma

Child-Centered Play Therapy (CCPT) is primarily used for children who have encountered trauma or have trauma-related diagnoses like Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). In CCPT, sessions are conducted in a playroom equipped with specific toys that help children convey their experiences and feelings. Here are some activities for trauma therapy:

1. Guided imagery is a therapeutic technique that encourages emotional expression. The Play Therapy Guided Imagery Worksheet from TherapyByPro is designed for children’s developmental stages, integrating imaginative play and storytelling. Visualization can act as a healthy coping strategy for clients dealing with distress related to traumatic memories.
2. Sand tray therapy is suitable for children experiencing intrusive thoughts, nightmares, and hypervigilance, and is recommended for those aged four and above. This approach involves using objects and mini figures to craft scenes that reflect their emotions and thoughts, allowing non-verbal expression and helping them gain control through symbolic play.
3. Children can collaborate with therapists to create an emotional box to contain distressing thoughts and feelings. This activity is particularly effective for older children who can identify their overwhelming emotions, promoting emotional boundaries and enhancing their sense of control.

Play Therapy Activities for Depression

Child-centered play therapy has shown statistically significant improvements for children experiencing depressive symptoms, as noted by feedback from parents and independent observers. Here are some effective play therapy activities for depression:

1. TherapyByPro offers a Play Therapy Worry Jar Worksheet to help clients externalize persistent fears, anxieties, or worries. This worksheet aids children in visualizing their issues apart from themselves, potentially reducing emotional intensity. Depending on the child’s needs, it can also facilitate discussions on effective coping strategies for their psychological challenges.
2. Play therapy may encompass a variety of creative arts techniques, including clay sculpting. Encouraging clients to shape objects or figures out of clay representing their feelings and experiences provides a non-verbal method for children coping with fatigue, loss of interest, or hopelessness. It can be an engaging way for them to convey and release emotions.
3. Creating an emotional thermometer is a creative activity that aids children in expressing their emotional states. This involves identifying their emotional fluctuations, offering them a tool for emotional awareness and expression.

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Transforming feelings from “cold” to “hot” can benefit kids who find it difficult to feel emotions or recognize their emotional states, especially those dealing with depression. This exercise may aid children in identifying and articulating their feelings better, leading to enhanced self-awareness.

Play Therapy Activities for ADHD

Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is a behavioral issue that can pose both social and educational difficulties for kids. While medication can enhance their functionality, play therapy and storytelling are valuable methods for addressing developmental needs such as social skills. Research shows that integrating play therapy and storytelling in clinical environments can lead to better self-expression, impulse control, accountability, and teamwork among school-aged children. Below are some play therapy activities to assist clients with ADHD.

1. Games focused on impulse control, like “Red Light, Green Light,” are excellent examples of active play that can be included in sessions for children struggling with hyperactivity and impulsivity. Suitable for ages four and above, these activities can help children enhance their self-regulation, sharpen their focus, and enjoy the challenge of following directions while having fun.
2. To encourage better social skills, matching card games focusing on emotions can be beneficial. These games allow children to link facial expressions and body language to certain feelings and situations, which is especially helpful for those who find it hard to read others’ emotions or identify their own. This can significantly boost their capacity for empathy and improve their social interactions.
3. Role playing can assist children with ADHD who face challenges with transitions and organization. By simulating daily routines using dolls or figures, kids can practice problem-solving tactics and identify patterns within their routines. This structured approach often proves beneficial in real-life scenarios that their ADHD symptoms complicate.

Conclusion on Selecting Play Therapy Activities for Clients

Play therapy offers a significant advantage for clinicians working with children, particularly since children may struggle to engage in traditional therapeutic methods for various reasons. Through play therapy, clients can express themselves even when they can’t find the required vocabulary for their thoughts, emotions, or experiences. Learning how to express feelings is a skill that many children have not yet developed by the time they enter therapy.

These therapy methods can assist clients facing various mental health issues in developing essential coping abilities and gaining insight to enhance their overall mental health and quality of life. Mental health practitioners looking to learn more about how play therapy can elevate their sessions are encouraged to pursue continuing education and specialized training.

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Resources:

• Burgin, E.E., Ray, D.C. Child-Centered Play Therapy and Childhood Depression: An Effectiveness Study in Schools. J Child Fam Stud 31, 293–307 (2022).
• Humble JJ et al. Child-Centered Play Therapy for Youths Who Have Experienced Trauma: a Systematic Literature Review. J Child Adolesc Trauma. 2018 Nov 9;12(3):365-375. doi: 10.1007/s40653-018-0235-7.
• Koukourikos K et al. An Overview of Play Therapy. Mater Sociomed. 2021 Dec;33(4):293-297. doi: 10.5455/msm.2021.33.293-297.

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