What is Child-Centered Play Therapy?
Play therapy can help children learn things that they could not learn at
schools, daycare centers, and grandparents' houses, and other places.
Child-Centered Play Therapy (CCPT) is a evidence-based therapeutic approach for children to communicate, explore, and work through their experiences through play.
Play therapy is not "just simply playing." Play provides a natural and developmentally appropriate way for children to express what they may not yet have the words to communicate. Unlike talk therapy with adults and some youth, play therapy invloves pretend play, creative activities, storytelling, movement, and other forms of play, so children can explore, express, and process emotions, relationships, experiences, and situations that may feel difficult or overwhelming.
Meanwhile, play therapy also gives children a sense of psychological distance and safety. Rather than having to talk directly about a difficult experience, a child may explore it through a character, story, drawing, miniature world, or imaginary situation. This can allow children to approach their experiences at their own pace and in ways that feel more manageable to them.
In Child-Centered Play Therapy (CCPT), we don't s not simply direct the child toward a particular activity or tell them what their play means. Instead, we follow the child's lead, responds with three golden rules to foster the child's sense of positive self, self-agency, emotional expression, and acceptance. The three golden rules are:
1. Non-judgemental
2. Genuineness
3. Empathy
Play therapy is therefore not about changing how a child plays. It is about creating a therapeutic space where play can become a child's natural way of communicating, exploring, and growing.
What Can Play Therapy Help With?
Child-Centered Play Therapy may be helpful for children experiencing a range of emotional, behavioural, social, and relational concerns.
Play Therapy facilitates children to express feelings of anxiety, phobias, excessive worry, perfectionlism,
OCD, and trauma.
Family Changes
Immigrations, life and routine changes in family, or other transitions can be difficult for children to understand and express.
Play therapy helps children and parents to navigate emotional needs of tantrums, meltdowns, and anger.
Children experience a healthier relationshp with the therapist to practice healthy boundary and respect through play therapy..
Working on limiting children's time spending on online games could be a big challenge.
Understand needs behind depression, aggressions, swearing, fidgeting etc.
Self-Esteem and Confidence
Children learn acceptance, respect, and appropriate agency can help them develop a stronger sense of themselves.
Previous traumatic events may create impact on children's nervious system and how they perceive the world.
Does My Child Need Play Therapy?
If your children experience school and relationship challenges, struggles about relationships with parents, low self-esteem and self-worth, anxiety and depression in children, and neurodiversity concerns including ADHD, Autism and language developmental challenges, play therapy can help to facilitate your children to:
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Express feelings that are difficult to put into words
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Understand experiences from different perspectives
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Overcome stress in ways that feel manageable
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Learn to build relationships with appropriate boundaries
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Activate self-agency to confidently navigate life stress and transitions
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Improve emotional expressions in a manageable and respectful manner
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Develop emotional awareness
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Increase self-worth by discovering their own ways of coping
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Experience self-acceptance without having to explain themselves
We do not necessarily need to wait until a problem becomes severe before seeking support. A child also does not need to have a formal diagnosis to benefit from counselling.
Our first goal is to understand the child behind the behaviour—their developmental stage, relationships, strengths, experiences, and the ways they naturally communicate.
What Role Do Parents Have in Play Therapy?
I believe parents and caregivers remain an essential part of the therapeutic journey.
Parent involvement may include conversations about:
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What you have been noticing at home
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Your child's developmental history
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Changes in behaviour or emotions
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Family relationships a nd circumstances
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Your concerns and goals
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Ways to support your child outside of sessions
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Your own experiences and challenges as a parent
Parent sessions provide an opportunity to develop a deeper understanding of the child's experience and consider how the parent-child relationship can become a source of safety, connection, and support. It is to help families understand what may be underneath the behaviour and find ways to strengthen connection.
About Sam —
Our Therapist Who Works With Children in Burnaby
Sam Lam, MSSC, RCC
Sam is a Registered Clinical Counsellor in Burnaby with over 10 years of experience working with children, youth, and adults. He offers counselling in both English and Cantonese, with a particular specialty of child-centred play therapy to support children and parents navigating social and relationship difficulties, as well as emotional and behavioural challenges.
Play Therapy Room
FAQ about Play Therapy
Q1) What Happens During Child-Centered Play Therapy?
Sometimes the whole session could be completely silent. Sometimes the whole session could be very interactive. While some sessions may appear to be intimating and difficult to process for children.
Children are given opportunities to play and explore in a carefully prepared therapeutic environment. Depending on the child's interests and developmental stage, play may involve:
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Pretend and imaginative play
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Sand and sensory play
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Art and creative activities
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Dolls, figures, and miniature worlds
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Building and construction
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Games
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Movement
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Storytelling
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Role-play
The therapist's role is not simply to "let the child play." The therapist carefully observes and offers therapeutic respond to address the children's concerns and the problems they want to navigate during sessions.
Q3) Does My Child Need a Diagnosis to Start Counselling?
No.
Play Therapy and counselling for individuals do not have to begin with a diagnosis.
I believe it is important to see the child rather than just the label. Two children may have the same diagnosis while having completely different experiences, relationships, strengths, and needs.
Q5) Is play therapy only for young children?
Play therapy is particularly suited to children ages 3 through 12 years old. Youth and adults often would also be benefited from experiential therapeutic play.
Play therapy's techniques and methods are carefully selected by the experienced therapist according to the individual's developmental and emotional needs.
Q7) What is the therapist's role in Play Therapy?
Therapist's role is to understand who they are, how they experience the world, how they communicate, and what may help them move forward. When appropriate, I can also work collaboratively with parents and other professionals to support a broader understanding of the child's needs.
Q9) Can play therapy help with anxiety, like OCD and Phobias?
Yes. Play therapy can provide children with a developmentally appropriate way to explore worries, fears, uncertainty, and emotional experiences. Whether it is the right approach depends on the individual child.
Q2) What Does a Therapist Actually Do During Play Therapy?
One common misconception is that play therapy means giving a child some toys and watching them play. It is much more intentional than that.
During play therapy, the therapist is continuously attending to:
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What is the child communicating?
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How is the child experiencing the relationship?
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What choices is the child making? How does the child respond when something becomes difficult?
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How does the child express and regulate emotions?
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How does the child experience control, connection, safety, and agency?
Rather than immediately interpreting a child's behaviour or assigning a meaning to their play, the therapist aims to understand the child's experience from their perspective. This allows the therapeutic process to develop from the relationship between the child and therapist, rather than from the therapist's assumptions about what the child "should" be doing.
Q4) How Long Does The Whole Treatment Take?
According to Center for Play Therapy in US, it particularly mentioned, "although CCPT (i.e. child-centered play therapy) is typically delivered in 16-20 weekly, 45-minute individual play sessions, the CCPT model has been successfully implemented in the school setting following a 16-session format delivered twice weekly for 30 minutes over 8 weeks."
It really depends on your child's needs, and the goals. Contact us and we can personalize a treatment plan for your child's situation.
Q6) What Do I Expect From Play Therapy?
You may expect your child to be more assertive, and communicate their needs with a different way that you did not see before. Most of our parents in the past reported that their children:
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became more confident about themselves during difficult social relationships
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were able to find out more effectives coping strategies
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became calmer and grounded when handling uncertainties
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increased the capacity of empathy, and had a strong sense of developing respecful relationships
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had stronger self-worth
Q8) Where is your play therapy office?
I provide in-person counselling and Child-Centered Play Therapy in Burnaby, BC (one-minute walk from Production Way–University SkyTrain Station.)
